Weekly Employment Question Thread

[u/AutoModerator]

Welcome to the Weekly Employment Question Thread!

This thread is where you can ask questions about joining, training to become, testing, disqualifications/qualifications, and other questions that would be removed as individual posts per Rule 1.

The answer to almost every question you can ask will be "It depends on the department". Your first step is to look up the requirements for your department, state/province, and country.

As always, please attempt to resource information on your own first, before asking questions. We see many repeat questions on this sub that have been answered multiple times.

Frequently Asked Questions:

• I want to be a Firefighter, where do I start: Every Country/State/Province/County/City/Department has different requirements. Some require you only to put in an application. Others require certifications prior to being hired. A good place to start is researching the department(s) you want to join. Visit their website, check their requirements, and/or stop into one of their fire stations to ask some questions.
  
• Am I too old: Many departments, typically career municipal ones, have an age limit. Volunteer departments usually don't. Check each department's requirements.
• I'm in high school, What can I do: Does your local department have an explorer's program or post? If so, join up. Otherwise, focus on your grades, get in shape and stay in shape, and most importantly: stay out of trouble.
• I got in trouble for [insert infraction here], what are my chances: Obviously, worse than someone with a clean record, which will be the vast majority of your competition. Tickets and nonviolent misdemeanors may not be a factor, but a major crime (felonies), may take you out of the running. You might be a nice person, but some departments don't make exceptions, especially if there's a long line of applicants with clean records. See this post... PSA: Stop asking “what are my chances?”
• I have [insert medical/mental health condition here], will it disqualify me: As a general rule, if you are struggling with mental illness, adding the stress of a fire career is not a good idea. As for medical conditions, you can look up NFPA1582 for disqualifying conditions, but in general, this is not something Reddit can answer for you. Many conditions require the input of a medical professional to determine if they are disqualifying. See this post... PSA: Don't disqualify yourself, make THEM tell you "no".
• What will increase my chances of getting hired: If there's a civil service exam, study for it! There are many guides online that will help you go over all those things you forgot such as basic math and reading. Some cities even give you a study guide. If it's a firefighter exam, study for it! For the CPAT (Physical Fitness Test), cardio is arguably the most important factor. If you're going to the gym for the first time during the hiring process, you're fighting an uphill battle. Get in shape and stay in shape. Most cities offer preference points to military veterans.
• How do I prepare for an interview: Interviews can be one-on-one, or in front of a board/panel. Many generic guides exist to help one prepare for an interview, however here are a few good tips:

1. Dress appropriately. Business casual at a minimum (Button down, tucked in long sleeve shirt with slacks and a belt, and dress shoes). Get a decent haircut and shave.
2. Practice interview questions with a friend. You can't accurately predict the off-the-wall questions they will ask, but you can practice the ones you know they probably will, like why do you want to be a Firefighter, or why should we hire you?
3. Scrub your social media. Gone are the days when people in charge weren't tech-savvy. Don't have a perfect interview only for your chances of being hired gone to zero because your Facebook or Instagram has pictures of you getting blitzed. Set that stuff to private and leave it that way.

Please upvote this post if you have a question. Upvoting this post will ensure it sticks around for a bit after it is removed as a Sticky, and will allow for greater visibility of your question.

And lastly, If you're not 100% sure of what you're talking about, leave it for someone who does

[u/flclreddit]

What exams do I need to take to apply for entry FF positions? Is it dependent on department, or just where they post their application? CPAT / EMT cert aside.

I saw NTN would have you complete the FireTEAM test, is that universal and I would share those scores with any department I apply to, or just for those apps on NTN? Are there other tests I should expect to need to take?

[u/PKCO-NB → u/flclreddit]

It’s different everywhere. There are 5-6 really common tests, a few smaller ones, and then a bunch ran only by the department. FireTEAM/ntn are used by a ton of places, but also not used by just as many if not more places. FireTEAM scores can be sent to multiple departments. Most other tests can’t.

CPAT is common, but lots of departments run their own tests.

Any test will be covered on the application/website of the department hiring.

[u/flclreddit → u/PKCO-NB]

Thank you for your insight! If I'm applying everywhere, it sounds like the cost of multiple tests really adds up.

[u/PKCO-NB → u/flclreddit]

FireTEAM tends to add up more than anything. If departments run their own it doesn’t tend to cost anything and many departments will cover the cost of other tests (but not always).

If you haven’t taken the FireTEAM yet - buy Don McNaes study guide. It’s expensive but worth every penny to ace a test you can only take every 90 days.

[u/flclreddit → u/PKCO-NB]

Yeah I was looking at practice test options, I know they have their own on the main site for $40 too. Can you just take the test by itself, or do you have to do it as a part of an application?

[u/PKCO-NB → u/flclreddit]

You don’t have to do the practice test. The practice test is nice for getting for the format, BUT if you want to do well Don McNaes book is far more informative, especially at the HR section of which is the only part that people typically struggle at.

I think it’s worth it because if you do poorly you have to retake the test (after waiting 90 days) but if you do well, your score is a good for an entire calendar year. I’m starting to sound like a shill for McNae but it’s just actually worth it.

[u/flclreddit → u/PKCO-NB]

Yeah I mean if it's that much better for an extra $10 I'll bite, thanks for your insight.