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Listed below is information for individuals
interested in finding temporary or permanent
employment as wildland firefighters
in Texas.
o Anyone interested in applying for
permanent or part-time positions with
any of
the federal land management agencies
(U.S. Forest Service, National Park
Service, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service,
or Bureau of Land Management) must go
to the national employment website at
http://www.usajobs.gov Click on "Search
Jobs" and then enter "Firefighter"
in the "Keyword Search" block.
This site
advertises for and allows you to apply
for jobs within Texas, as well as anywhere
in the U.S. Most summer seasonal jobs
will be found in the western states.
Few
summer firefighters are hired in the
southern states.
o Those wanting to work for the Texas
Forest Service may find openings for
permanent jobs at http://txforestservice.tamu.edu
under the "Employment" tab.
Seasonal jobs are not posted on the
web site, but you may contact your local
Texas Forest Service office to see if
there are opportunities for part-time
work
during periods of high fire danger.
A list of TFS offices can be found at
the link
listed above, under the "Contact
Us" tab.
Many of the agencies will require applicants
to have successfully completed the Basic
Firefighting and Introduction to Fire
Behavior course (NWCG S-130/190). This
is a 32-
40 hour course that is offered twice
each year at the Texas Interagency Wildland
Fire
Academies in Lufkin in May and Bastrop
in October.
The academy schedule will be posted
approximately three months prior to
each academy at http://www.tamu.edu/ticc.
In addition to the course work, each
person will be required to complete
a physical fitness test consisting of
a three-mile walk with a 45-pound pack
in less than 45 minutes. (Note: certain
seasonal jobs with TFS may only require
a 16-minute walk with no pack.)
Once a person is hired and all pre-requisites
have been met, a qualifications card
(or "red
card" as it is more widely known)
will be issued indicating the individual
is certified as a
basic wildland firefighter. You must
be employed by one of the federal or
state agencies
in order to receive a red card.
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