Is Seasonal Work Worth It?

Seasonal work is something I had almost no knowledge of before I decided to do it.

I had family who had worked for the National Parks, but it was a long time ago and they had gone to school before they decided to work a seasonal job.

From the time I was young, I planned to go to college and become a nurse. During my senior year of high school, as I was applying to college and visiting schools, I was starting to question what school I would like and what degree I should do. I ultimately decided after visiting each school Western Michigan University was my favorite. I loved their campus and I felt I could really like it there. When I set out to go to college, I wanted a school that for the most part was closed off from town. Western checked all my boxes. As the year went on I applied for scholarships and did all the things you're supposed to do. The more I thought about it and saw how much money it would cost and how much debt I would have to go into I really started second-guessing my choices. I decided about mid-way through my senior year that I no longer wanted to be a nurse. I felt like I was back at square one. I couldn't believe I had to make such a big life decision at such a young age. I didn't want to be shackled by debt.

So, I made a plan. I was going to move to a different state. I was going to get a job and just try to save up some money. Again, that plan fell through. Back to square one. I felt so lost. I had graduated high school. All my friends were leaving for college and here I was. I felt like I had no purpose. The only thing I knew for sure is I did not want to go into that much debt before I got to see more of the country or world.

Around August, my parents went on a trip, they got the chance to visit a national park. They decided to ask the workers how they got the job. They told them they used the site Xanterra. It is a site that has seasonal jobs listed for national parks. The big ones I wanted to work at were Crater Lake, Zion, and Glacier. I didn't see lots of the national parks listed on Xanterra and I tried to do some digging and found the site Aramark. They had a lot more variety and positions available for jobs. That then lead me to Cool Works. Cool Works is the site I have used to find my seasonal jobs. They offer tons of national park jobs as well as other jobs around the world with free housing though most jobs they offer are located in the United States.

If you want a seasonal job Cool Works is definitely the site, I recommend. I got to travel to seven states in four months while working for my first job. To be fair only two of those were provided through my job. I met so many different people from so many different places. They told me jobs they would and wouldn't recommend. They shared stories and were very open and included new people in group activities. I would 100% recommend seasonal jobs.

With all of that being said living at the company you are working for there are some downsides. There is little separation sometimes between work and life. You constantly see the same people as you all share the same spaces. This wasn't a huge problem for me, but I can see this affecting some people more than others. I personally have noticed since you live for free you have to work a ton. I think this can sometimes be annoying and hard to deal with. There were weeks when I was at work from 6 am-8 pm multiple days in a row. It definitely can be very draining at times. Most places do guarantee at least one day off a week which is nice. I do believe at least two days off are ideal. The housing isn't always the nicest either. Some people I know have had great experiences and very nice housing and some have had awful experiences. I would say where I lived was pretty nice overall. Of course, since it's a communal space you really have to rely on everyone doing their part when it comes to picking up after themselves and cleaning. My work also provided ample opportunities for group outings. We got the chance to go to Washington D.C., a haunted farm, a light show, and an NBA game. I was also told since I was there during the slow season, they do a lot more outings in the busier seasons.