Now's the time to apply for jobs at Virginia State Parks!

I've said before that running a state park is very similar to running a small town. To make that town run, we need a cast of a thousand -- seriously, we really hire close to 1,000 seasonal employees each year. Some work three months, some longer, and a few even work year round. Seasonal positions offer great opportunities for high school and college students but we also love to get older "more seasoned" applicants. From lifeguards to snack bar workers to cleaning and maintenance crews, contact rangers, office workers, and interpreters, we hire for a variety of positions.

Donna Callaway, High Bridge Trail State Park

Hiring for these seasonal positions (we call them wage positions because there are no benefits) is handled through our individual parks. Sometimes we post the openings on our Jobs website, but not always. So, if you live near a Virginia State Park, call the park office (the park phone number is listed toward the bottom of their web page) and ask for information about summer or seasonal recruiting. You can check our jobs listing as well, but please remember everything is not necessarily listed here. Non salaried positions are limited to 1500 hours in a calendar year. It is not too soon to check with the parks now for this summer's opportunities.

Staff Training

We were recently approved to fill some of our full time vacancies. Our full time positions are always listed on our website and the state recruitment website. Some of these are senior management positions and others are mid-level positions. Be sure to check them out.

New River Trail State Park Manager Sam Sweeney speaks with a reporter

For our entry level law enforcement positions we actually have pools you must apply to that close every six months. So if you are interested in Park Ranger or Chief Ranger law enforcement positions, be sure to apply to the pool every six months in order to stay in consideration for those positions. [Chief Ranger Pool; Park Ranger Law Enforcement Pool].

We have two great internship programs - one for our Park Ranger Career Development program and one for marketing internships.

Cameron Lipscomb, just promoted to Chief Ranger, Kiptopeke State Park, and former intern

Finally, don't forget about our AmeriCorps summer interpretive programming opportunities and our summer Youth Conservation Corps (ages 14-17). Both of these programs are also recruiting now.

Twin Lakes/High Bridge Trail YCC Crew from 2012