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US Military Veterans Programs

SCA brings more than 55 years of experience to solving complex conservation issues; engaging youth, young adults and diverse populations in the conservation arena. In collaboration with federal land management agencies, SCA offers training programs to help returning veterans transition to civilian life and prepare them for careers in conservation. Veterans who successfully complete these programs earn certifications in wildland firefighting, chain saw operation, wilderness medicine and more.

SCA's conservation career training programs help land management agencies meet the 2009 Presidential Executive Order that directed agencies to assist veterans in securing employment and helping with their re-entry into civilian life; and it meets the need for federal agencies to hire employees that have relevant experience and certifications.

The programs also address several issues currently facing Veterans

Helping with Veteran re-entry into civilian life
Developing highly qualified and well-trained conservation leaders
Assisting Veterans in securing employment by providing concrete skills and experience.

Veteran-specific programs for 2013

Eligibility

Post-9/11 United States Military Veteran
DD214 paperwork, honorable or medically discharged (under certain circumstance we will accept a less then honorable discharge; subject to review)
Pass a criminal background check and subject to a motor vehicle record check
Physically and mentally able to work long hours in extreme heat and cold (below freezing to 110 degrees +)
Complete necessary but sometimes physically demanding or repetitive tasks
Willingness to be part of a community environment; socialize with fellow members after hours and help with chores
Comfortable living and working with a group of other military veterans from all branches of the service and variety of ranks
Comfortable in work setting that may change due to weather or other unforeseeable circumstances
Interest in being contributing member of the team and take supervision from team leader
Comfortable being in potentially remote locations for long periods of time
Interest in carpentry, and in careers or educational opportunities in the fields of outdoor recreation, environmental science, natural resource management, historic preservation and/or Archeology / Anthropology

How to Apply

To begin an application, log in or create a new account on MySCA.
Create the Basic Profile, which includes demographics such as your veteran status.
- Click on "Create Application" and select the "Internship/Corps" application.
- Take the time on the application in the "Education and Training" and "Skills" sections to put one or two good sentences in the appropriate text boxes.
- Your military skills and experiences are important.
You may save and return to the application at any time.
After completing and saving the first page of the internship application send an email to SCArecruiting@thesca.org with the subject line "Veterans Programs" and we will waive the application fee.
After saving an application, you can attach specific intern positions.

Blogs by Veterans Fire Corps Teams – Summer 2012

To search for other opportunities near your home

Go to the Find an Internship page.
Select the State that you would like to serve in

To select multiple states, hold down the Ctrl button as you click on the desired states
To unselect a state, hold down the Ctrl button as you click on the state that you would like to remove

Enter the desired city that you would like to serve in

Many cities/towns can be close together, so you may want to start with just entering the state and narrowing it down from there
You can only search for one city at a time.

Quotes from Veteran's Fire Corps members

"I am preparing to travel to Idaho City to work with a Forest Service Recreation team. I am so thankful to the SCA for all the experiences that led me to a job that is so much something I enjoy doing." - Brian Ramsey, Marine Corps & Army NG

"I'm still attending Ohio State but I changed my degree plan from Psychology to Natural Resource Management due to how much I enjoyed all my experiences out in Arizona with [SCA]. I'm now a volunteer fireman here in my town. They have paid for all my training and will continue to pay for more training as long as I stay working with them. I'm having a blast and I really appreciate all that SCA has done for me. I would never have known of becoming a Wildland Firefighter without being a part of that experience." - Joshua Kovacs, Air Force

"This past week, Engine 711 (Type 6) from the Williams Ranger District of the Kaibab National Forest hired me. Another Fire Corps member recently got hired onto a Minnesota crew. Without my experience with SCA, this possibly may never have happened. The VFC was the catalyst that helped both of us get jobs." - Marshall Kulp, Army