Seasonal work is temporary employment for a few months. This is different from full-time employment in which you work the whole calendar year. Seasonal jobs are typically common in places that have high and low seasons, as companies need to hire more seasonal employees during the busier months and less in slow months. Most seasonal jobs are in the tourist industry from food and beverage to tour guides to ski lift operators and more. As a seasonal worker in Yellowstone I have worked both a summer season and winter season in different occupations (sales associate, assistant gift shop manager, and tour guide). For each season I have been given a start and end date and are “kicked” out in between my contracts.

National Park Service (NPS)

One of the first opportunity that comes to mind when I think of seasonal work is the National Park Service. NPS helps run many different locations like our national parks, national historic places, etc. Jobs in NPS include but are not limited to law enforcement, maintenance, and interpretive ranger. NPS also has full time positions but these are pretty competitive. To apply for a job with the national park service you will need to create an account with USAjobs.com.

Concessioners

A concessioner is a company that has a contract with the owner of a certain space that allows them to run a business in that location. Many of America’s national parks have concessioners that run lodging or dining. During my time in Yellowstone I have only worked for one of the concessioners, a company called Xanterra. If your goal is to work in a national park it is typically easier to get a job with a concessioner than the national park service. If there is a park you are interested in you can search to see if they have concessioners with contracts for that park and see if they have any employment opportunities (more often than not they do, as turn over is pretty big in the seasonal industry).

Ski Resorts

If you love all things winter and snow then you can work a season at a ski resort. At a ski resort you can work in retail, food and beverage, lift attendant, ski instructor, etc. There are hundreds of ski resorts all over the US, so you have plenty of locations to chose from. The biggest problem when it comes to working in a ski town is finding housing (this is a big problem for most resorts).

Cool Works

Many of the people that I have met in Yellowstone found their job through a website called Coolworks.com. This website has a comprehensive list of many seasonal jobs. Cool Works sorts jobs by type, season, state, and by jobs that have housing. It is a great resource to find out what jobs are currently available. You might be able to find a seasonal job closer to home!

Pros:

• Living in a unique environment

• Meeting people from all over that share a love for the place you live or the job you are doing

• Time off in between seasons

• Jobs are often easy to get depending on the department

• Affordable housing (for some employment opportunities)

Cons:

• The pay is not great

• Housing and/or dining is often not high quality

• High turn over means there is typically a staffing issue

• Time of between seasons are unpaid

• Employment benefits such as healthcare are not common