Was thinking about this thread today watching the footage of the Fairfax search and rescue teams preparing to go to Nepal to help after the earthquake. I assume that's similar to the DMAT teams a Pp mentioned.

The federal government has a network of national DMAT teams (Disaster Medical Assistance Teams) that are activated in times of national need or sent overseas to assist with search and rescue. These teams are usually composed of EMTs and firefighters who apply for the DMAT. The EMTs and firefighters have regular employment with their local government authority and then, when called up by the federal government, are able to be released from their normal work duties. Pay, insurance, worker's comp., etc. are all coordinated between government structures.

Kids can become volunteer firefighters as early as age 16 in Montgomery County. There is lots of good training available both in firefighting and first aid.

GW offers EMT courses and some other undergrad college courses in disaster management (or at least they used to). At one point they had summer EMT programs for 17 year olds. I think you can sit for the National Certification exam for EMTs when you turn 18.

If she's interested in international work, becoming a humanitarian assistance worker offers great opportunities for travel and being "outdoors" a lot. There is wide room for undergrad degrees -- engineering, water/sanitation, medicine/health, etc. There's not really one path to this, but the Peace Corps is a common starting point because it gives you a language, cultural/regional competencies and experience working with local populations and independence.

I've known some SmokeJumpers, all of whom have been Forest Service employees. Pay is not great and the work is seasonal, which can be hard.

OP, have her look into the Coast Guard, particularly the Coast Guard Academy if she's a stellar student and athlete. They have great options in their training, depending on what you do. Rescue swimmer? Many things to do in the military in many branches, but the Coast Guard is technically not military (Not DoD).

Okay, this was totally me as a teenager. Have her look into Wilderness First Responder (WFR) courses. There is also such a thing as Wilderness EMT training (W-EMT) which a friend of mine did and which I would have loved to do back in the days when I was like your daughter. She would probably love those, and they are great training for things like trip-leader and camp counselor positions in the short-term (which are fantastic summer jobs for older teenagers).

For Search and Rescue, have her look into the Shenandoah Mountain Rescue Group. They are local and have some good training opportunities, though I think you need to be 18 to become involved. It pulls in a lot of military-types, as well as outdoors-loving people who have more typical day jobs. If she's old enough, talking to people there might be a good way to explore interests.

For paid search and rescue type jobs, I think you're either looking at the military or getting really lucky getting into an emergency response job outwest. Disaster response is another option. Once she's college aged, she could look into things like wilderness firefighting or the Student Conservation Corps.

I had a fantastic time doing trip leading type jobs in college, but there's not a lot of future in it if you want to either make more than the minimum to get by or have any kind of family life. My friend who was a W-EMT has made a career of it though, and has lead trips on 5 continents for a tour company. I became a biologist, which is a-okay, though the vast majority of my time is spent staring at a computer screen, the pay is mediocre and there's a lot of competition for interesting positions.

Once she is in high school or college, look into the Student Conservation Association-they set up work groups in parks for high school kids, and summer internships for college-aged kids in national parks. While I was in college I spent one summer working as an SCA interpretative ranger i, it was great, I basically had the same responsibilities as the "real" seasonal rangers, and then the next summer I got hired as a regular GS grade seasonal ranger by the NPS. While an SCA I got free room and a stipend to cover food etc, so at least I didn't lose money on the summer, and it was a wonderful job.

Within the park service there are several tracks-the "interpreters" are the rangers giving walks and talks and working in visitor center, and then "enforcement" are the rangers working at entrance stations and patrolling campgrounds etc, more like police. Interpreters tend to have forestry/wildlife biology/environmental sciences degrees (and many seasonal rangers are teachers during the school year), and enforcement types are more generalists or have some background in law enforcement. Then the 3rd group is maintenance, i.e. picking up trash, fixing trucks, fixing structures.

It is a hard life if decide to pursue as a full-time career. You get moved around from place to place a lot, pay is not great until at a pretty high level and the budget has been slashed over the past 30 years.

SUNY ESF (at Syracuse)--they even have a forest sports team!

Anonymous wrote:OP here…again, thank you for all these leads! To the PP who asked where we are going--Southern California.

Anyone have any thoughts on colleges that specialize in some of this stuff? The PP comment on U of Michigan got me thinking.

Lots of schools! If she's looking for the funky, outdoor focused schools, any of the Eco League Schools should fit the bill: http://ecoleague.org/who-we-are/
Alaska Pacific University
College of the Atlantic (ME)
Dickinson College (PA)
Green Mountain College (VT)
Northland College (WI)
Prescott College (AZ)

(I can hear everyone now. "But those aren't well-regarded schools!" Believe me, I know. I graduated from one of them and am always having to explain where it is and what makes it different. But damn if I didn't get into a MA program ranked top-10 in the country in my field, so.........college is what you make of it)

Michigan Tech has an outstanding Forestry program

Lewis & Clark College in Oregon

Warren Wilson College in North Carolina is super green with a lot of environmental studies majors

A lot of other schools offer majors that would be of interest to your daughter. Some majors she might be interested in exploring are Outdoor Education, Natural History, Natural Resources, Forestry, Environmental Studies, Environmental Science.

Three programs that may be of interest to your daughter as she further explores her love of the outdoors:
NOLS http://www.nols.edu/
Outward Bound http://www.outwardbound.org/
Southern Appalachian Wilderness Stewards http://www.trailcrews.org/ (run by friends of mine)

Hate to be a naysayer but a neighbor just said her son at Univ of TN (Eagle Scout etc - loves outdoors) was advised by his profs in class that jobs are scarce with more kids interested in the environment these days and that they should think long and hard about the salaries/jobs they would be facing.

Anonymous wrote:OP here…again, thank you for all these leads! To the PP who asked where we are going--Southern California.

Anyone have any thoughts on colleges that specialize in some of this stuff? The PP comment on U of Michigan got me thinking.

Frostburg University in MD offers programs like this - parks and recreation management, adventure sports, etc.

http://www.frostburg.edu/rpm/

For scouting to get into now, you could try the American Heritage Girls. It is Christian based, so if that puts you off, then I wouldn't do it. We are going camping this weekend with our AHG troop, and we have a week of summer camp available plus camporee in the Fall. The older girls are doing zip line, archery, and climbing. The younger girls are doing horseback riding. Also, the older girls get to learn how to use a knife around the campfire, how to build a campfire and cook outdoors. And all kinds of other outdoorsy stuff.

OP here…again, thank you for all these leads! To the PP who asked where we are going--Southern California.

Anyone have any thoughts on colleges that specialize in some of this stuff? The PP comment on U of Michigan got me thinking.

Coast Guard, Air Force/ Military, Fire Jumpers I think they are called. Park Rangers are federal Law Enforcement Officers.

EPA - Emergency Response Branch

I work at the Department of Interior and there are tons of jobs for outdoorsy people. We have lots of well paid geologists, georgraphers, engineers (lots of outdoor testing and field work), National Park service rangers, environmental majors, etc.

Anonymous wrote:From what I've heard, getting hired as a park ranger is really hard, and so is making a living as a biologist, even with a PhD. Geology can lead to environmental testing and restoration with field work. Becoming an arborist or an outdoor guide for hiking, climbing, or rafting (in the summer and working at a ski resort in the winter). If she wants to go in to emergency services, becoming a certified paramedic is the best way to get in.

My cousin is an arborist. Spends his days climbing trees and cutting them down with big power tools. He loves it and makes a great living.