Outdoor Recreation Planner

If you enjoy working in the outdoors, meeting people and helping them realize a satisfying recreation experience, then working in the BLM recreation program may be for you. BLM recreation planners work with public lands visitors in all types of settings. They may be involved with off-road vehicle areas, white-water boating locations, wild caves, National Trails, Wilderness Areas, or developed campgrounds. They might be responsible for long-range plan development, maintenance, or visitor use monitoring in any or all of these types of settings. Generally, a specialist in recreation should have a background (a bachelor's degree is preferable) in a resource-related field. Some common fields of study are: outdoor recreation, forest recreation, park management, recreation planning, or landscape architecture. Other related fields are: sociology, forestry, economics, biological science, park administration, earth science, natural resource management, engineering, or recreation. Specialized study in archaeology, geology, interpretation, law enforcement, sociology or history would also be helpful. Consideration is also given to persons with education or training in visitor services or visitor information or as a park technician. To prepare for these courses while you're in high school, you should consider classes in the sciences, math, English, and computer sciences.