Park Ranger
Explore employment trends, required job duties and skills for this
career. ASU offers a variety of degrees that can help you prepare
for and meet your career goals. Visit
ASU's Career and Professional
Development Services
to learn how to develop your career plan.
Potential job titles in this career
Environmental Education Specialist,
Environmental Educator,
Interpretive Naturalist,
Interpretive Park Ranger,
Natural Resource Educator,
Naturalist,
Park Activities Coordinator,
Park Guide,
Park Interpretive Specialist,
Park Ranger
* Additional schooling, certification, or degrees maybe be required for some of the potential careers that are listed.
Provide care for park program animals.
Conduct field trips to point out scientific, historic, and natural features of parks, forests, historic sites, or other attractions.
Provide visitor services, such as explaining regulations, answering visitor requests, needs and complaints, and providing information about the park and surrounding areas.
Prepare and present illustrated lectures and interpretive talks about park features.
Plan and organize public events at the park.
Assist with operations of general facilities, such as visitor centers.
Train staff and volunteers on park programs.
Plan, organize and direct activities of seasonal staff members.
Develop environmental educational programs and curricula for schools.
Confer with park staff to determine subjects and schedules for park programs.
In this career, it is important to know
Biology - Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
Customer and Personal Service - Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, and rules of composition and grammar.
Education and Training - Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
Geography - Knowledge of principles and methods for describing the features of land, sea, and air masses, including their physical characteristics, locations, interrelationships, and distribution of plant, animal, and human life.
Public Safety and Security - Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.
Communications and Media - Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.
History and Archeology - Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.
Sociology and Anthropology - Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins.
Administration and Management - Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
It's useful to be good at
Oral Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
Speech Clarity - The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you.
Oral Comprehension - The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
Written Comprehension - The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
Written Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand.
Speech Recognition - The ability to identify and understand the speech of another person.
Deductive Reasoning - The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.
Near Vision - The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).
Fluency of Ideas - The ability to come up with a number of ideas about a topic (the number of ideas is important, not their quality, correctness, or creativity).
Problem Sensitivity - The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing that there is a problem.
| Location |
Pay period |
2025 |
| 10% |
25% |
Median% |
75% |
90% |
| United States |
Hourly |
$22.86
|
$27.74
|
$35.10
|
$44.02
|
$53.08
|
| Yearly |
$47,550
|
$57,700
|
$73,010
|
$91,560
|
$110,410
|
| Arizona |
Hourly |
$22.79
|
$25.73
|
$32.09
|
$39.35
|
$50.36
|
| Yearly |
$47,410
|
$53,510
|
$66,750
|
$81,850
|
$104,750
|
| 2025 Median% |
| United States |
$35.10
Hourly
|
$73,010
Yearly
|
| Arizona |
$32.09
Hourly
|
$66,750
Yearly
|
Employment (2025)
27,700
employees
Projected growth (2025 - 2035)
Average (4% to 7%)
Projected job openings (2025 - 2035)
2,100
* Data obtained from the Occupational Information Network (O*NET) under sponsorship of the U.S. Department of Labor/Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA).
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Accelerated bachelor's plus master's degree programs are designed for
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undergraduate coursework with graduate coursework to accelerate completion of
their master's degree. These programs feature the same high-quality curriculum
taught by ASU's world-renowned faculty.
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