My nephew,19 years old, has decided to be a Fireman rather than a Police Officer, thank goodness, I was a cop for 10 years and if I had to it all over again I'd be a fireman. Anyhow, he's working on his Assoc Degree and I told him to get EMT Certified. What else does the young boy need to do? Thanks
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Depending on what departments he is interested in working for, he may need to put himself through a fire academy. Some hold their own academy's but most do not and require you to already have your fire certification as well as your EMT -
He needs to get that red patch.
He will have a lot more opportunities with that.
Even if he gets his fire cert More than likely whatever department hires him will send him back through their academy. If he gets that paramedic cert he will be way ahead of the game.
Good luck to him. Wish I would of started that young!Comment
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Tuned in. I am wanting to do the same thing. From what I have heard requirements vary depending on department, the EMT basic certification will help out a lot and might help him earn extra money for having it. Some departments have extra incentives for having higher degrees, grades, being bilingual etc. I just recently took the written test for SAFD from what I have been told for the physical test CARDIO. Everyone that I have talked to about this career says they love it. Good luck to your nephew and hope everything works out for him
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When he does get ready he'll need to test everywhere, not just that one dream department he thinks he wants to work for. Lots of guys waste valuable years testing for the same one or two departments every year when they coulda already been working somewhere elseComment
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Originally posted by tfowler10 View Post
He is a Texas boy, but right now he's in Green Bay Wisconsin. He wants to live in Texas and can't wait to get back. He's been there for a year now.Comment
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Originally posted by Corn Sack View Post
I told him he'll have to test a lot. But he can do it. And will make a good hand.Comment
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[QUOTE=Rotney;8463898]My nephew,19 years old, has decided to be a Fireman rather than a Police Officer, thank goodness, I was a cop for 10 years and if I had to it all over again I'd be a fireman. Anyhow, he's working on his Assoc Degree and I told him to get EMT Certified. What else does the young boy need to do?
He is on the right track by getting his associates. Starting out taking EMT school will give him an idea if he is going to like the EMS side of things. I also would recommend that he go directly into paramedic school. Then he can go to Fire Academy. I would suggest that he take these courses through a college that will give college credit for all 3 certifications. The fact that he is only 19 means that he has plenty of time to get everything he needs to become more marketable when he starts testing. There are quite a few departments that will not even allow you to test until you are 21.
Feel free to ask any further questions. You can PM me if needed. I am a Captain in a midsize department in the metroplex with 20 years of service. On my off days I am the Fire Science Program coordinator at a local community college. I don't mind helping anyone who is interested getting involved with the best profession in the world!Comment
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Thank you guys for all the info. TBH is great.Comment
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I have worked for the Galveston Fire Dept for 7 years.
Here is my recommendation.
1. Start testing.
2. EMT-B
3. Fire Academy
4. Paramedic
Reasons.
1. A lot of fire depts will hire without any certs. Plus you will get a chance to see how the testing is.
2. EMT will give you a small idea of what 75% of the job is. Plus it will give him an upper hand on the rest of the class.
3. His interview starts at this point. When I took the academy at College of the Mainland, I had 2 instructors who where working in Galveston. One was the assistant Chief.
4. Not all depts require it. Also lots of depts will send you. Plus it will give him something to do while he waits on getting hired.Comment
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I may be of some service. I used to do hiring for a 175 member department in the DFW area. Most of the advice here is good. Get the associates, then go through a fire academy, EMT, and even Paramedic if possible. Feel free to PM me if you have more questions. I'm at work right now and of course we are getting busy, cause I am on the Green Screen.Comment
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Thanks again for all the info. He appreciates it.Comment
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I have a different opinion, but mine's based on my experiences only. The schooling is great, keep at it, get a degree. But, being a student, or even a cadet in the academy doesn't preclude you from testing with departments that don't require you to be certified. My theory was always to get hired and have the department pay for my certifications, oh yeah, and pay me while I'm in school! It worked out for me.Comment
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Tell him to test everywhere he can.He can put himself threw the Academy if he wants, and will be a leg up on the competition but its expensive and some Depts will hire you without and pay for it and pay you while in their Academy.I would not recommend like some said about going straight from EMT-B to Paramedic.He needs to gain some experience handling and working with patients.A Good EMT will make a better Medic.We have guys that go from one straight to the other and most of them Suck.They have no people skills and never mastered the Basics.You can't Run before you walk so start from the bottom and work his way up.He will appreciate it more and gain more respect from his peers.I don't trust ANY Medic that hasn't been an EMT-B for at least a couple yrs.Comment
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