DOES YOUR CAREER DEPARTMENT REQUIRE STATE CERTIFICATION BEFORE HIRING?

[DRAGONSLAYR1999]

MINE DOESN,T. THEY DO INNER DEPARTMENTAL TRAINING BUT NONE OF IT IS STATE CERTIFIED. I HAVE ALL OF MY CERTS. BUT I HAD TO TAKE OFF WORK AT THE DEPARTMENT TO GO GET THEM. DO YOU THINK THIS IS WRONG?

[ 01-24-2002: Message edited by: DRAGONSLAYR1999 ]

[4iron]

Here are the "minimum"certifications we REQUIRE:
1)State licensed Paramedic
2)State firefighter II cert.
3)State apparatus/driver cert.
4)State fire inspector I cert.
5)Haz Mat Technician cert.
Those are just the fire/EMS certifications needed to APPLY!.Then the written,oral,physical fitness exams.Then there are the other basic requirements,ie:valid drivers license,H.S. diploma,ect.Most everyone we hire also has an associate degree in fire science because of the competition.Through this areas degree program,many of these certifications are obtained during the program with the exception of the Paramedic license,(which takes about an additional year in most cases).If a person would go to school full time,you'd be looking at about 3 years of school.By the way there's over a three year waiting list to get into the degree program!
Hope this is what you were looking for.

[Fitguy51]

So does this mean does that mean that all firefighter recruits paramedics and fire inspectors?

[4iron]

>Fitguy51
I don't quite understand your question.I simply listed the certification requirements our department has.In order to get hired here you must complete those state classes.You must be a paramedic,and have completed the Fire Inspector I class and the other certifications I have listed.It doesn't mean we hire JUST fire inspectors.We conduct company fire inspections on a regular basis for the entire city.Our administration believes by having this certification class prior to hire,the firefighter has a basic understanding of this important aspect of fire prevention.
I hope this answers your question.

[KeithA8]

Well being an equal opportunity employer my city requires nothing but a high school diploma. Of course it helps to have a fat resume but it's not required. I would say half of those hired have no experience at all. They will go to recruit school anyway. When I was in recruit school the people with all the certs were no beter than those who didn't know what a nozzle was. They will teach you everything you need to know. Not everyone has the opportunity to take a fire class like FFI or an inspecter class because they are not sponsored by anyone.

[Fitguy51]

4iron - I guess I was asking if they have to have all these certs then you have no recruit training other than to bring you up to speed on dept SOP's? In my area of NYS the only requirement for hire is EMT cert and scoring high enough on the test to be reachable. If they have say 5 openings they can choose from the top 8 scores. They are then sent to NYSAFS for training if needed.

[4iron]

>Fitguy51:Those are only the prerequisites for hire.We also have our own testing for hire,establish a list that lasts 1-2 years depending on the given year and number of new hirees needed.Once hired,they then have a recruit 12 week in house training program designed to cover a broad area of firefighting,ems,confined space,haz mat,trench rescue,SOP's,SOG's,policies, subjects our department delivers for services.Once the candidates successfully complete our 12 weeks of recruit training they're put on line.

[First In]

4iron, just curious about which department you're with. Pretty impressive list of requirements.

[intheoven]

In Florida the require fireifghter 2 and Haz MAt as well as minimum of EMT in most places. Preferred is Paramedic. However, some places who are hurting have been known to hire medics who are still in fire school or vice versa.

[Hammerhead338]

When I was hired in 1997, you had to have your firefighter 1. Now we do all of the training in house. There is some good points about this like you dont have any bad habbits, and we can show you how we do things, but it takes awhile to get someone up to speed.

Have a good day and be safe

Joe

[fieryred943]

It use to be getting hired in our department, you just had to apply.(I am not sure what the prerequisites were) The department would train the recruits inhouse.

Now we have to graduate from a Fire College. It gives you a Public Fire Protection Certification, which essentially gives you:
F/F Level 1 & 2
Haz Mat Tech (my class only got tech, you come out with Ops now)
EMT Basic
Fire Instructor Level 1
Fire Inspector Level 1
Water Rescue
Driver Ops
Hydraulics
Airport Fire fighting
Extrication
Public Safety
Rope Rescue Ops level

Rather than weeks of inhouse training, new recruits are on the floor within 4-5 days. Because they have the basic fundamentals and they are paired with a senior man to get them aquainted with how the dept/shift runs.

Cheers


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