I can't provide you with any first-hand information but I've heard that nowadays, the US Park Service is looking less for people with outdoor experience and more for people with a police background. <img src="images/graemlins/frown.gif" alt="" /> Sadly, it's a sign of the times -as the National Parks get more and more crowded, the need for Law Enforcement personnel becomes greater. Some parks, especially along the Mexican border, have been all but taken over by drug runners and people smugglers. However, if you're still interested, and if you're eligible (I have absolutely no idea if you need to be a US citizen to apply for any of these organisations) a couple of years with any police force may not go amiss. (I've also read somewhere that there are an increasing number of calls where the Park Service has had to go out and rescue one of their own Rangers who's gotten lost; a side effect of hiring people without much wilderness experience. So I would guess that a stint with the Military Police, and taking a couple of courses in Wilderness Survival, Escape and Evasion, etc. might look very good on a resume. Just my uninformed thoughts - I've never really looked into any of these careers myself.