Applications for Forest Service Summer Jobs Begin Jan. 6

If you're considering a summer job in one of Washington's National Forests, the application process starts next week.

Many temporary summer jobs on the Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest will be advertised on USAJOBS for one week starting Jan. 6 in a new centralized hiring process for the Forest Service in Oregon and Washington.

Approximately 50 temporary fire-related positions as well as some timber, recreation, biology and range positions are expected to be filled in this first round of hiring. Applications for these jobs must be submitted on the USAJOBS website between Jan. 6 and Jan. 12.

Fire-related jobs include positions on engine, helitack/rappel, hotshot, fire suppression and hazardous fuels reduction crews, as well as in dispatch communications. Additional temporary jobs will be advertised Feb. 4-10. However, these will be mostly non-fire positions.

“Initially, we were going to advertise only fire-related positions in January, but some non-fire positions also needed to be filled early,” said Deputy Forest Supervisor Jason Kuiken. “Most of our summer jobs will be filled during these two weeks in January and February, and then there will be one last period in March to fill any remaining positions.”

Descriptions of available positions can be found on the Forest Service outreach website. Enter 110617 in the organization box to limit the search to jobs on the Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest or select the Pacific Northwest region for all jobs in Washington and Oregon. The outreach notice lists the announcement number to use to find and apply for the job on the USAJOBS website.