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District Wildlife Manager
District Wildlife Manager

​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​Follow Your Dream...Become a District Wildlife Manager!

​​​​Benefits  

  • Use your degree in a job you’ll love 
  • Work outdoors 
  • Promotional opportunities 
  • Outstanding benefits packages 
  • Stable salary 
  • Professional development training 
  • Paid time off and sick leave 
  • Statewide transfer opportunities


Job Description

DWM female laughing with public membersToday’s District Wildlife Manager is the “game warden” of yesterday . . . and a whole lot more. The present-day wildlife officer does much more than check licenses and enforce hunting regulations. A District Wildlife Manager (DWM) is one of the “public faces” of Colorado Parks and Wildlife, the person the public is most likely to meet and work with. DWMs live in the communities where they work. They enforce the laws and manage wildlife in the field, but also work with school kids, deal with human-wildlife conflicts, make presentations to groups, offer customer service and get involved in their communities in many ways. This is an entry level position with a competitive starting salary, plus standard state employment benefits. ​

Work Schedule - District Wildlife Managers are wildlife professionals dedicated to law enforcement, customer service, and wildlife management. Most wildlife species are active at dawn and dusk, and hunters, anglers, and other wildlife enthusiasts participate in wildlife recreation during those times and on weekends and holidays. District Wildlife Managers work long hours. You will hear many District Wildlife Managers describe their careers as a “dream job”, because they’re working for wildlife. The work is never boring, and there is no “typical day” for a District Wildlife Manager.​

Promotional Opportunities – Career advancement is within your reach. District Wildlife Managers have been promoted to positions in education, wildlife biology, aquatic biology, conservation biology and management. Promotions are based on merit, and not seniority. When pursuing promotions, it is often to your advantage to be willing to relocate.​


What Does it Take to Become a District Wildlife Manager? 

Education 

Graduation from an accredited college or university with a bachelor's degree in biology, environmental science, fisheries/wildlife biology, conservation biology, natural resource management, wildlife management, zoology, ecology, ichthyology, or a closely related field.

Appropriate work experience which provides the same kind, amount and level of knowledge as the required education may be substituted on a year-for-year basis for the bachelor’s degree. 

District Wildlife Manager releasing a bear in the winter woods

People Skills 

Wildlife management is sometimes described as people management. A large part of the job is interacting with hunters, anglers, other wildlife recreationists, and the general public on a daily basis. You will need good public speaking and conflict resolution skills, and to be comfortable interacting with people of all ages, viewpoints, and backgrounds.​

Physical Assessment

All applicants must pass a physical fitness test, the requirements of the test are:

  • Run 300 meters in 72 seconds
  • 21 push-ups in one minute
  • 28 sit-ups in one minute
  • Walk/run 1.5 miles in 17:00 minutes

Additional Requirements

All applicants must:

  • Possess and maintain a valid State of Colorado driver’s license at time of hire
  • Submit to a drug screening
  • Be willing to be fingerprinted
  • Successfully pass a background investigation.

Employees offered a conditional employment must successfully complete the Colorado Parks and Wildlife training program including successful completion of the basic Peace Officer Standards and Training (POST) program for certification as a Peace Officer with Colorado.

NOTE: If you have used marijuana in the past year, used other illegal drugs in the past three years, been convicted of a felony, been convicted of any domestic violence charge, or been convicted of any misdemeanors which preclude POST certification as a Colorado Peace Officer, you will be disqualified and will not be hired.


Get Involved

Volunteer

DWM releasing a duck into a river
Volunteering is a great way to learn about the agency and gain valuable experience. Find more information on our CPW Volunteer web page.

Ride Alongs

Interested in seeing what the day-to-day job is like? Apply to go on a ride along with a local District Wildlife Manager. To apply, please fill out this form and return it to Jeremy.Sifuentes@state.co.us​. We will do our best to match you with someone in your preferred location, but this may be dependent on current staff capacity. Please allow for 30 days for us to coordinate a request.

Seasonal and Temporary Positions

Internships, seasonal work, and temporary positions are a fantastic way to get your foot in the door. Apply today!


How to Apply

Applications for the District Wildlife Manager position open once per year, in the late summer or early fall. Stay up-to-date with the application opening date by subscribing to our eNews and signing up for job alerts.