Internship – Traditional Trades Advancement Program – Sleeping Bear Dunes National Seashore

The Student Conservation Association offers a 26-week internship in the Traditional Trades Advancement Program at Sleeping Bear Dunes National Seashore, Michigan. Participants will gain hands-on experience in historic preservation, focusing on trail maintenance, masonry, and cultural landscape work. The program includes training, a bi-weekly allowance, and potential career advancement opportunities. Candidates must be U.S. citizens aged 18-30, with no prior trades experience required.
Job Description

Traditional Trades Advancement Program – Sleeping Bear Dunes National Seashore

Build your hands-on preservation trades skills at Sleeping Bear dunes National Seashore through projects addressing a range of historic preservation needs. Over the course of a 26-week immersive experience, TTAP participants train and work alongside experienced NPS employees to preserve cultural resources and crucial infrastructure. This position is a great way to gain practical, hands-on experience and the foundation for a career in historic preservation. The projects at Sleeping Bear Dunes will offer a broad look into all aspects of historic preservation and maintenance. Participants will focus on cultural landscape, trail maintenance, masonry, wood window restoration, and timber framing . TTAP placements will also work in the Antique Apple orchard to learn pruning and grafting, pest scouting, fruit identification, cultural landscape plan identification, and maintenance. The ideal candidate is excited about hands-on cultural landscape work and should be able to demonstrate or discuss their interest in the historic preservation field. TTAP Placements must be able to commit to a 26-week term.

Position Dates: April 7 – October 3, 2025, with weekends and federal holidays off.

Schedule: Monday – Friday, 7:00 AM – 3:30 PM

Location: Sleeping Bear Dunes National Seashore, North and South Manitou Island, Michigan

Skills Training & Support Provided:
• Trail construction and maintenance
• Cultural landscape maintenance and plant identification
• Orchard care including fruit identification, pest scouting, pruning, and grafting
• Masonry and timber framing on historic structure
• General preservation maintenance, including carpentry and finishes

Position Benefits:
• $1,440 bi-weekly living allowance (pre-tax)
• $1000 Funding for independent professional development
• Travel and associated expenses for in-person Historic Preservation Fundamentals course
• Public Land Corps Hiring Authority (at position completion)
• OSHA 10 Certification
• Training and networking opportunities with NPS and preservation professionals
• Park housing is available

Essential Qualifications:

· Participants must be between 18 and 30 years of age.

· Veteran participants must be between 18 and 35 years of age and possess a DD214 with a discharge status of Honorable or General under Honorable Conditions.

· Participants must be a U.S. citizen or U.S. permanent legal resident.

· Interest in historic preservation trades and continuing into the trades field

· No prior trades experience is required to be eligible to participate in the TTAP Program.

· Physical effort is heavy to moderate for this position and requires occasional moving or positioning of objects or materials up to 50lbs, unassisted, following proper procedures to avoid injury. Frequently required to stand while working, ascend ladders or scaffolding, and move and work in awkward positions at varying heights above the ground.

All applicants must meet Minimum Qualifications to be considered for the position. Those who may not meet all the Preferred Qualifications are encouraged to apply! Applications are reviewed on a rolling basis and the National Park Service partner will conduct interviews.

No experience in preservation trades required!

The Traditional Trades Advancement Program (TTAP) is an internship program of the National Park Service for aspiring preservation tradespeople. TTAP participants train and work alongside experienced NPS employees at a specific park site to preserve historic infrastructure and cultural resources. These valuable resources need constant thoughtful and careful preservation, repair, and maintenance. By assisting with preservation projects, participants directly improve the physical conditions of nationally significant park spaces that are accessed and enjoyed by thousands of visitors each year. Participants gain practical, hands-on experience and the foundation for a career in historic preservation. They learn the fundamentals of historic preservation and receive on-the-job training in one or more traditional trades such as masonry, carpentry, woodcrafting, landscape preservation, and more. The program is committed to providing all aspiring preservationists—especially those underrepresented in the trades—with a unique opportunity to work on important real-world projects while building professional experience in America’s national parks.