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Seasonal Park Guide

Department of the Interior
National Park Service
Fairbanks Alaska Public Lands Information Center (FAPLIC)

Summary

These positions are located at the Fairbanks Alaska Lands Information Center, in the Morris Thompson Cultural and Visitors Center.

This is an open continuous announcement with an established initial cut-off date of February 25, 2026. Applicants are strongly encouraged to apply by the initial cut-off date. Please see "Next Steps" for additional information.

Anticipated season dates: April through October

Government housing is not available.

Overview

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Accepting applications
Open & closing dates
02/18/2026 to 04/03/2026
Salary
$19.73 to - $28.69 per hour

An additional 1.49% cost of living allowance (COLA) will be added to the salary above. Pay is subject to annual review and adjustment.

Pay scale & grade
GS 4 - 5
Location
4 vacancies in the following location:
Fairbanks, AK
Remote job
No
Telework eligible
No
Travel Required
25% or less - You may be expected to travel up to 5 nights per month for this position.
Relocation expenses reimbursed
No
Appointment type
Temporary - 1560 hours
Work schedule
Full-time
Service
Competitive
Promotion potential
None
Job family (Series)
Supervisory status
No
Security clearance
Not Required
Drug test
No
Position sensitivity and risk
Moderate Risk (MR)
Trust determination process
Financial disclosure
No
Bargaining unit status
No
Announcement number
AK-1537-YUGA-26-12863857-ST
Control number
858042100

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Duties

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The Fairbanks Alaska Public Lands Information Center, located in Fairbanks, is an interagency visitor center that represents nine state and federal agencies and provides information and education on all public lands in Alaska. It serves as a centralized point of information for the local residents and the visiting public about public lands, resources, and recreational opportunities in Alaska. It is located in the Morris Thompson Cultural and Visitors Center along with their partners, the Fairbanks Convention and Visitors Bureau and the Tanana Chiefs Cultural Programs.

As a GS-04 Park Guide, duties may include:

  • Staff information counter in a visitor center.
  • Answering questions on a variety of subjects.
  • Guiding small groups and providing services to visitors.
  • Present limited and repetitive pre-established talks including introductions to films, map talks, and static exhibit interpretation.
  • Orient hikers to conditions and equipment needs.
  • Interpret park values for visitors with varying interests and backgrounds.
  • Guide small parties (up to 20 people) on short walks.
  • Issue backcountry registrations.
  • Collect cash and other payments in high volume sales operation following established accountability guidelines for handling government funds.

As a GS-05 Park Guide, duties may include:
  • Performs duties including programs that require application of broad subject-matter knowledge of the Alaska Public Land Information Center.
  • Guide large groups (up to 50 people) on longer walks or programs
  • Provide a wide range of services to park visitors.
  • Orient and explain current park events and warn of safety hazards.
  • Give talks using pre-established guidelines that require application of broad subject-matter knowledge of the features of the site which include detailed and specific interpretation and explanation of the outstanding features of the site.
  • Greet and answer a wide variety of visitors' questions. The questions themselves arise from observations of the features themselves; from the demonstrated major interests of visitors, or the nature of the talks
  • Guide interpretive talks on site may include up to 50 people while telling the story of events which took place there, and how those events related to the particular historic situation. May also provide walking tours through the large exhibit hall and on the grounds of the Morris Thompson Center.
  • Research topics for interpretive presentations and special programs using various resources and develop the outline for presentation.
  • Provide a range of services such as information concerning the NPS, surrounding areas of interest, the area's recreational opportunities, public orientation and explanation of current park events, and inform visitors of potential safety hazards.
  • Collect cash and other payments in high volume sales operation following established accountability guidelines for handling government funds.

These positions may collect and account for money. Positions with fee collection or government money handling duties may require a higher background check than the non-fee positions.

Hourly Rate Pay Range by Grade:
GS-04 steps 1 to 10: $19.73 to $25.64 per hour + COLA
GS-05 steps 1 to 10: $22.07 to $28.69 per hour + COLA
An additional 1.49% cost of living allowance (COLA) will be added to the pay for the Fairbanks duty station. Pay is subject to review and adjustment.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

  • U.S. Citizenship required.
  • Appointment subject to background investigation and favorable adjudication.
  • Meet Selective Service Registration Act requirement for males.
  • Selectee will be required to participate in the Direct Deposit Electronics Funds Transfer Program.
  • You may be required to operate a government (or private) motor vehicle as part of your official duties; a valid driver's license is required. Please do not submit a copy of your driver's license at this time.
  • You will be required to wear a uniform and comply with the National Park Service uniform standards. A uniform allowance will be provided.
  • You may be required to work on-call, evenings, weekends, holidays, or overtime.
  • You may be required to travel overnight away from home up to 5 nights per month. You must obtain a government charge card for travel purposes.
  • You may be required to complete training and obtain/maintain a government charge card with travel and/or purchase authority.
  • Must be able to lift 25 pounds.
  • Applicants must be at least 18 years old.

Qualifications

All qualifications must be met by the closing date of this announcement-04/03/2026-unless otherwise stated in this vacancy announcement.

Credit will be given for all appropriate qualifying experience. For current Federal employees, if hours worked per week are not included on your resume, you must submit a non-award SF-50 for each federal position listed as part of your application to be used to validate your work schedule and determine the amount of qualifying experience that you will be granted. An award SF-50 will not be acceptable documentation for which to consider your amount of qualifying experience. For all other applicants who are not current federal employees, your resume must state either "full-time" (or "40 hours a week") or "part-time" with the number of hours worked per week to ensure proper crediting of specialized experience. Failure to adequately provide information needed to determine number of hours worked in each position may result in that time not being credited when evaluating qualifying experience.

For periods of time that reflect military service, the DD-214 or Statement of Service is sufficient to meet the full and/or part-time hours requirement as the service dates will be reflected.

To qualify for this position at the GS-04 grade level, you must possess at least one of the following minimum qualifications by close of the announcement:

EXPERIENCE: You must possess at least six (6) months of general experience and six (6) months of specialized experience for a total of one year of experience comparable in scope and responsibility to the GS-3 level in the federal government (obtained in either the public or private sectors). General experience is any type of work that demonstrates the applicant's ability to perform the work of the position, or experience that provided a familiarity with the subject matter or processes of the broad subject area of the occupation. Experience may include, but are not limited to: selling merchandise, collecting and accounting for fees or other monies, greeting visitors, disseminating information, providing directions, or other work which required dealing with people on a recurring basis and that indicates the ability to acquire the knowledge and skills needed to perform the duties of this position. Specialized experience is experience that involved oral presentation of historical, scientific, or program information to groups; or developing and/or revising technical, historical, or scientific information for oral presentation to groups. Some examples of specialized experience could include park guide or tour leader, naturalist, environmental educator or teacher, or other similar work. You must include the number of hours worked per week within your resume.
-OR-
EDUCATION: You must have successfully completed two years of education above high school (60 semester hour or 90 quarter hours) which included at least 12 semester hours of related courses, such as in American history, science, public speaking, parks & recreation, education or communications. You must include a copy of your transcripts.
-OR-
Successful completion of a combination of education and experience: You must have an equivalent combination of education and experience. For example, I have 6 months of general or specialized experience (50% of the experience requirements for this position and grade level) combined with one year of education as outlined above (50% of the education required to qualify), which included at least 6 semester hours of related courses such as American history, science, public speaking, parks & recreation, education or communications (50% of the related courses required). You must include a copy of your transcripts and include the number of hours worked per week within your resume.

-OR-

To qualify for this position at the GS-05 level, you must possess at least one of the following minimum qualifications by close of the announcement:

EXPERIENCE: You must possess at least one year of specialized experience comparable in scope and responsibility to the GS-4 level in the federal government (obtained in either the public or private sectors). Specialized experience is experience that equipped the applicant with the knowledge, skills and abilities needed to successfully perform the duties of the position. Examples of specialized experience include oral presentation of historical, scientific, or program information to groups; or developing and/or revising technical, historical, or scientific information for oral presentation to groups. Examples of specialized experience could include park guide or tour leader, naturalist, environmental educator or teacher, or other similar work. You must include the number of hours worked per week within your resume.
-OR-
EDUCATION: You must have at least four years of education above high school leading to a bachelor's degree with courses related to the occupation such as American history, science, public speaking, parks & recreation, education or communications. One year of full-time academic study is defined as 30 semester hours; 45 quarter hours; or the equivalent in a college or university. You must include a copy of your transcripts.
-OR-
Successful completion of a combination of education and experience: You must have an equivalent combination of education and experience. To combine education and experience, first take the number of semester hours (or equivalent), in excess of the first 60 semester hours earned towards your degree which included related courses such as American history, science, public speaking, parks & recreation, education or communications, and divide by 60 semester hours (or equivalent). Then take the number of months of full-time experience and divide by 12 months. Add the two percentages. The total must equal at least 100 percent in order to meet this description. You must include a copy of your transcripts and include the number of hours worked per week within your resume.


Volunteer Experience: Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religious; spiritual; community, student, social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.

Education

To qualify based on education, you must submit a legible copy of transcripts from an accredited institution with your name, school name, credit hours, course level, major(s), and grade-point average or class ranking. Transcripts do not need to be official, but if you are selected for this position and you used your education to qualify, you must provide official transcripts before you begin work.

If you are using education completed in foreign colleges or universities to meet qualification requirements, you must show that your education credentials have been evaluated by a private organization that specializes in interpretation of foreign education programs and such education has been deemed equivalent to that gained in an accredited U.S. education program; or full credit has been given for the courses at a U.S. accredited college or university.

Additional information

A selectee receiving a first appointment to the Federal Government (Civil Service) is entitled only to the lowest step of the grade for which selected The display of a salary range on this vacancy shall not be construed as granting an entitlement to a higher rate of pay.

This announcement may be used to fill additional positions if identical vacancies occur within 90 days of the issue date of the referral certificate.

Physical Demands: The work requires standing for long periods of time, walking for long distances, climbing and descending steep inclines, bending, and lifting moderately heavy items. Mental stress and physical fatigue occur due to high volume of personal contacts, occasional emergency responses, and repetitive nature of interpretive programs.

Working Conditions: Work is performed both indoors and outdoors resulting in exposure to a variety of weather conditions.

Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.

How you will be evaluated

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

You will be evaluated based on how well you meet the qualifications listed in this vacancy announcement. Your qualifications will be evaluated based on your application materials (e.g., resume, supporting documents), the responses you provide on the application questionnaire, and the result of the additional assessments required for this position. A review of your resume and supporting documentation will be made and compared against your responses to the Assessment Questionnaire to determine if you are qualified for this job. If your resume is incomplete or does not support the responses provided in the Assessment Questionnaire, or if you fail to submit all required documentation, you will be rated 'ineligible', 'not qualified', or your score will be adjusted accordingly. If a determination is made that you have inflated your qualifications or experience, you can lose consideration for this position. Please follow all instructions carefully; errors or omissions can affect your rating.

Resumes must not exceed two single-sided pages and resumes longer than two pages will not be accepted. You may only submit one resume. Only the document submitted as the "Resume" under the Documents section will be used to determine your qualifications/eligibility and for rating purposes. In the event you submit more than one resume, only the latest submission will be reviewed.

Candidates who apply under Competitive Merit Promotion procedures will undergo a quality review to determine if they are highly qualified based on the content of their resume and their responses to the questionnaire. Best qualified candidates will be referred if all required supporting documentation has been provided.

Candidates who apply under Noncompetitive Merit Promotion procedures will undergo a quality review to determine if they are minimally qualified based on the content of their resume and their responses to the questionnaire. Qualified candidates will be referred if all required supporting documentation has been provided.

You will be evaluated on the following competencies:

  • Education and Training
  • Interpersonal Skills
  • Manages and Organizes Information
  • Oral Communication
  • Technology Application


In order to be considered for this position, you must complete all required steps in the process.

Please submit 1) a copy of your most recent performance appraisal/evaluation less than 18 months old, and 2) a list of any awards (e.g. superior performance awards, special act or achievement awards, quality step increase, etc.) you received in the last 5 years. Any performance appraisal/evaluation and award documentation you provide will be forwarded to the selecting official. The selecting official will review this documentation and give it due weight consideration during the overall selection process.

If you do not have your most recent performance appraisal/evaluation less than 18 months old, please submit a statement as to why it is not available. Please indicate if any prior performance appraisals/evaluations were at an acceptable level.

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