RMYC Internship Program Booming

Want a step up on the competition, getting your foot in the door for a job with natural resources management agencies and non-profits? Consider a placement within RMYC’s burgeoning internship program.

The organization’s internship program engages youth and young adults in valuable work experiences within natural resources management agencies and non-profits. The placements allow participants to consider or advance careers and education in natural resources, with RMYC supporting all internships while the interns work under the daily supervision of the hosting public lands management agency or non-profit. Partners include the United States Forest Service, the Bureau of Land Management, the National Park Service, the Colorado Youth Corps Association, and a growing circle of agency and non-profit partners. The best part is that upon successful completion and at least 640 hours, interns qualify for the Public Land Corps Hiring Authority, which gives priority to hiring when applying for federal jobs.

“Our intern program is growing yearly, " says RMYC’s Natural Resources Internship Director Alex Guerra. “It’s probably up 50 percent since I started in 2022.”

Guerra came to RMYC as a crew leader in 2019 after working crews for Southwest Conservation Corps and in Arizona. Intern placements, he says, have grown to 133 this year, with USFS positions remaining the most popular. “Particularly with our trail and recreation-focused positions, from front-country-type positions to those taking you eight days in the wilderness,” he says, adding the second-most popular placements are with the BLM. “The majority are rec and trails, but they can also tie to everything from grazing permits and gas and oil work to endangered species, hydrology, archaeology, and soil/vegetation projects.” The RMYC website lists position descriptions for each internship type.

Here’s how it works: RMYC’s internship partners get in touch with Guerra each season, saying how many people they’re looking for where, and then Guerra works with them to help facilitate placements. He says there are usually about four to one applicants for vacant positions, with both RMYC and its partners interviewing candidates. Some programs even last through the winter.
RMYC alumni and internship partner organizations feel the program is a huge success. “My internship allowed me to work side by side with the Forest Service, experiencing all sides of fire, from fuels work and initial attack to working on engines, prescribed burning, and working on wildland fire modules,” says alumni John Auther, now a full-time wildland fire suppression employee with the Forest Service. “It allowed me to make great connections and determine what path I wanted to take within the fire world.” Adds alumni Anthony Galdos: “My internship gave me a step forward regarding the careers I’m interested in. It’s helped me understand the need of the work and the wants that government agencies look for.”

RMYC’s partners are also pleased with the program. “I can't say enough good things about the RMYC internship program,” says Rachel Barnett, project lead for the Terrestrial Assessment, Inventory and Monitoring (AIM) program at the BLM’s White River Field Office in Meeker. Her data collection teams provide valuable information on vegetative and soil conditions across vast rangelands and woodlands, with AIM crews working out of almost every BLM office nationwide. RMYC recruits and employs crews for Colorado's northwest field offices in Kremmling, Craig, Silt, and Meeker. “The sheer amount of data we collect is monumental and important for management decisions and policy changes. BLM programs like mine could not be accomplished without our partnership with RMYC.

“Not only do RMYC's internships create pathways to professional work in conservation, but they also provide interns with experience working on teams of people from different backgrounds,” she adds. “And it was probably the best way I could have entered ‘the real world’ for this reason. This teamwork strengthens individuals' work ethic, mental fortitude, conflict management skills, physical fitness, personal humility, and appreciation of the great outdoors. It's a beautiful blend of hard work, personal growth, lifelong friendships, and unforgettable memories.”