Description: Conducting face-to-face interviews with visitors at various recreation sites in National Forests in the United States of America.

Location:
Rogue River – Siskiyou National Forest
Willamette National Forest
Umpqua National Forest

Dates (Approximate): July 25 – October 8, 2017 (Must be at WVU Campus in Morgantown, WV for processing before heading to Portland, OR.)

Employer Info: West Virginia University School of Natural Resources

Stipend: $360 USD per week

Amenities: The following items will be provided free of charge: Rental car, gas card (for work purposes ONLY) and housing.
Flight to and from the US is NOT provided!

Hours: 8-10 hour days/approx. 4-5 days per week/ 30-40 hours per week

Experience: Excellent people skills, ability to read maps, competent driving skills, detail oriented, internet and email access, and able to work without direct supervisor supervision.

Requirements: Must be at least 20 years of age. Responsible individual; independent personality; maintain a polite, courteous and friendly demeanor. Willingness and ability to drive long distances. Willingness to drive to remote locations over a variety of road surfaces. Willingness to work in all weather conditions. Mastery in written and oral communication. Ability to conduct interviews with National Forest visitors. Ability and willingness to coordinate with your supervisor on a daily basis.

Application Process: Application for a J-1 Visa (student exchange visa) is necessary for program participation. WVU requires proof of a minimum of $2,000 USD in a bank account before processing the application and issuing the necessary forms for the visa.
Contact Information: If interested please email your resume and cover letter to Micah Gregory
Please indicate in the subject line: “Last name- NVUM 2016”
Please respond to this email with a date that you can arrive and date that you can leave. If you choose to stay until October, please do not plan to leave any earlier than October 1, 2017. You will then get the official OIP application. Once you receive your application and instructions, please have it back to WVU by April 30, 2017.

Thank you for your interest in our internship and research opportunity in the United States. The program is in partnership with the USDA Forest Service Region 6-Pacific Northwest. Our interviewers will be working in the National Visitor Use Monitoring Program (NVUM) which is a federally mandated recreation study that looks at what activities people are participating in, where they are going on the Forests, how long they are staying on the Forests, how satisfied they are with services and facilities provided by the Forest Service and the economic impact of tourism on the Forests and surrounding communities. This year, our forests are located in southern Washington, northern Oregon and the Oregon Coast. Our interviewers will conduct 5-10 minute long exit surveys with visitors as they leave sites for the last time. The shifts are six hours long and surveying takes place on a variety of sites such as overlooks, campgrounds, forest roadways and Wilderness trails. The position requires an independent, polite and personable individual as you will be interacting with the general public on a daily basis and traveling to sometimes remote destinations. The amenities that our program provides include rental car for use within the STUDY AREA ONLY, a gas card for WORK purposes only and Forest Service bunk housing over the summer. Some of the bunkhouses are located further from towns or cities than others, but we will be bunking interviewers in housing units together so that no one is alone. This job also absolutely requires the ability and willingness to drive often long distances on a variety of road surfaces, sometimes during early morning and evening hours.
Below are the Forest Service units that we will be working on:
1) Rogue River – Siskiyou National Forest
2) Willamette National Forest
3) Umpqua National Forest  If you want to the chance to work and explore our nation’s National Forests, this is certainly the position for you. All of these forests are in a beautiful area of our country- the Pacific Northwest. There are also endless possibilities for outdoor activities such as camping, whitewater rafting, hiking, horseback riding and fishing. To be considered for this program, you must have a valid driver’s license, a valid passport and the willingness to stay in the US for a minimum of two months. We typically prefer that our exchange students come in August and stay until at least October 8. We do not require a TOEFL score, but you must have strong conversational language skills since interviews are conducted entirely in English. You will also need to apply for a J-1 Exchange Visa. All costs associated with obtaining this Visa are your responsibility. Additionally, our exchange students are responsible for paying for international flights to and from the US. We do provide a stipend payment that adds up to $360.00 USD per week. However, stipend checks should not be expected until at least October and November. We try to process them as quickly as possible, but sometimes processing of international payments takes a long time. However, once in the US, you will only need to worry about the cost of food and fun! You may arrive in the US no more than 30 days before the program start date on your DS-2019, and you may stay 30 days after the program end date. If you choose to arrive before or stay after, YOU MUST give us your travel itinerary. From the time that you enter the US, to the time that you leave, you are WVU’s responsibility. So we need to have an idea of where you at all times within US boarders. We want you to have fun, but we also want you to be as safe as possible! Students will need to report to the WVU campus in Morgantown, West Virginia to process into SEVIS and to ensure that all health insurance and tuitions fees have been successfully waived. You can choose to arrive in the US at which ever port of entry you would like but you will need to be in Portland by the start of the program.

18.04.2017