If your 100% set on going into guiding/backcountry hunting industry ...go to Royal Tine..no other school holds a hand to cody and Leree and what they put on. on top of everything Cody does to make sure his name is reputable to every outfitter that calls him every year, LeRee is a unbelievable Dutch oven cook and runs a Dutch oven school at the same time.. its the best food ive ever had. I taught at Cody's school for 5 summers, that is how i personally know how well he runs it. There were plenty of students through the years that realize guiding is not all fun and games and is a ton of hard work, and dont go into the industry after the school, but all of those always enjoyed having gone to the school nonetheless. If you decide to go and dont want to entirely take my word for it, have those other schools send you references of past students who have become guides, and those that did not and find out why...Cody will happily do so, and I doubt you will talk to anyone who has a bad thing to say about their time there.
IF you are not an elk hunter/born and raised in the west, dont expect to get hired on as a guide your first year, and if you do, the outfitter might not be the best to work for. Any good outfit will have repeat guides just as much as clients. . Plan on being a camp jack/wrangler and learning from the guides. It is not all fun and games when you have over $10,000 of paying clients behind you for a week and you are expected to tag them out, it can be very frustrating and stressful at times when the hunting is tough. It is not something outfitters are going to want a rookie to do. As stated above, it is tough to make a living doing, but it is something that many people will be jealous of at the same time. I averaged 150 days in the hills each year through the past 8 years including summer pack trips and fall hunting, It was a great time, and there is plenty I will miss about it, but I am looking forward to having my own string of horses in the years to come and doing trips for myself finally.
Also..as 2rocky mentions above...Just because you are a good or avid hunter does not make anyone a great guide at all... Guiding is 100% a people industry. You have to be able to entertain clients non-stop and keep them happy when the hunting is tough. If you arent good with people, guiding is not the industry to jump into. Just like to point that out, as I know plenty of amazing hunters, who are absolutely terrible guides and clients dont want to hunt with them again even if they get tagged out, because they dont enjoy being around someone who doesnt speak for days on end.