Firefighters protect communities against the loss of life, injury, and destruction of property by fire. Firefighters work as a team with each person assigned to a special job. They respond to various emergency and non-emergency calls such as fire alarms, different types of fires, public service requests, vehicle accidents, hazardous materials situations, and medical aid calls. Some of the duties include locating the source of a fire, connecting hose lines and nozzles, rendering emergency medical care, operating power tools and hand tools, and placing ladders onto buildings to assist with rescue or fire operations. In order to ensure their equipment works properly, firefighters are also responsible for apparatus, fire station, and equipment maintenance.
If you are new to the Fire service, or are just starting out – make an effort to meet a Firefighter at your local fire station. This can be intimidating for most people when beginning their career, but there is no better way to find out if this job is for you than to meet the people involved and see how things operate in person. Be respectful and clear about your intent when you arrive at your local station, and most Firefighters will be happy to tell you a little bit about the career and may even have time to show you around. Remember, they too were once in your shoes.
You are encouraged to NOT skip this step! No sense in attending a semester-long Firefighter class, only to find out later that the job wasn’t what you were expecting.
Firefighter Training
Earn your EMT certificate
- …You must be an Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) before applying for most Firefighter jobs. The Firefighter jobs that do not require an EMT certificate are volunteer positions, with no pay.
- …To become an EMT, you must first earn a Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) certificate, and then pass a semester-long EMT course.
- …For more information on how to become an EMT, please visit EMT-Info
Training and coursework
- Start work towards your Fire Science degree as soon as possible. Enroll in classes that will help to satisfy the requirement for an Associated Arts (AA) degree. Check with a guidance counselor at your selected college for details regarding what will be needed to work towards a degree.
- For a list of colleges that offer a Fire Science degree, please visit Firefighter-Training.
- Attain your Firefighter I certificate as soon as possible. The California State Fire Marshall (CSFM) is a governing body that has created a “task booklet” of necessary skills and training that must be completed for an individual to earn a Firefighter I certificate. The CSFM allows either a Fire Department or an accredited college to deliver the training needed to complete the task booklet. There are 2 ways you may earn this certificate:
- Attend a Firefighter I Academy – This is 13 weeks of academic and hands-on training that will teach you the basics of firefighting. Please see Firefighter-Training for more information on the local and regional opportunities to attend a Firefighter I Academy.
- Attain a job as a reserve or volunteer Firefighter – Do so at a Department that is qualified to sign-off on your task booklet as you gain the necessary skills and training. Most departments that can do this will make it clear to potential applicants in the job description announcement.
Firefighter Jobs
- Once you meet the minimum requirements to apply for the various fire agencies within the region, you should be starting that process as soon as possible. For instance, once you have obtained your EMT certificate, you should be actively seeking employment with any of the volunteer or EMT level fire agencies within the region.
- Early in your career, your level of medical training will dictate your eligibility for the various types of Firefighter jobs available to you.
- The application/testing/interview process can take months; therefore you will be best served by applying to as many jobs as you can – provided you have a genuine interest in working there. The more practice you have with the application/testing/interview process, the better – however, don’t waste an agency’s time if you know that you would not accept a job offer.
