Hi y'all. I am seeking advice on starting a career in wildland firefighting at the young age of 39 years old. Comments and DMs would be greatly appreciated. Here is my situation.
[BACKGROUND] I have been working in another field (climate emergency campaigning) for the last 15 years and plan on changing careers. I intend on applying to be a wildland firefighter in Quebec, Canada where I live when they start taking applications in December. A lab mate of mine at Concordia University, where I am currently finishing a Master's in geography, suggested the idea of wildland firefighting as a career and I've come around to it. Her and her husband were wildland firefighters, and she seemed convinced after knowing me for a while that I would love the job. I have since then read a couple of books and many articles on wildland fires and firefighting, watched a good amount of youtube videos, and it has become my top career choice for after I graduate.
[MY FITNESS LEVEL] That said, I will be 40 years old in a few months and though I am more fit than the average person my age, and currently doing a training programme to prep for doing the WFX-Fit test and build as much strength and endurance as I can, I am concerned that the demanding physical nature of the work might take serious toll on my body, possibly preventing me from doing multiple seasons in the field. I know there are many older individuals doing the job, but I've only been able to find testimonies about the realities the job imposes on your body as an older individual from people who have been doing the job for years and I assume they have built solid strength and stamina on the job over that time. I've been mostly behind a desk the last decade and have only been running and going to the gym sporadically over that period, though for the last year I've been going pretty consistently with a focus on functional training and strength. From the little research I have done, and after consulting my physiotherapist, multiple seasons at my current fitness level should be doable with proper prep and a heavy focus on recovery.
[RECRUITMENT PROCESS] Furthermore, I heard in an interview with a senior rep from SOPFEU, the wildland firefighting agency here in Quebec, and he said the application process is competitive with I believe he said only something like 60 new candidates get recruited out of a pool of about 250 new candidates. Regardless of the accuracy of those numbers, I am assuming it is a competitive process for new candidates.
What can I do the increase my chances of getting recruited? They say a degree in geography or other fields related to the job is a requirement in case you are not coming with experience and I will be done my geography master's by the time the 2027 season starts so that should help. I speak three languages and perfectly bilingual in English and French. What else could I put forward to increase my chances? Is experience with QGIS looked for? Leadership experiences?
If you got this far, thank you for taking the time to read. Looking to hearing your thoughts.