It has been said that firefighters have the best job in the world. Theirs is a profession that is exciting, rewarding, and secure. It also provides excellent pay, benefits, and promotional opportunities. Firefighters are also highly esteemed members of their communities. For good reason, hundreds of thousands of young men and women pursue this career in earnest.
The Los Angeles Fire Department offers exceptional and diverse career opportunities for men and women of seeking professional and personal satisfaction. With excellent salaries and benefits, various job assignments, unlimited opportunities for advancement, and the chance to make a real difference in the community, joining the LAFD team may be just the exciting, diversified, and rewarding career you’re looking for.
ABOUT THE LAFD
The Los Angeles Fire Department is one of best firefighting agencies in the world and has long set a standard of excellence for training and performance. The Los Angeles Fire Department (LAFD) is a full-spectrum life safety agency protecting approximately 4 million people who live, work and play in America's second largest City.
The LAFD's 3,562 uniformed personnel protect life, property and the environment through their direct involvement in fire prevention, firefighting, emergency medical care, technical rescue, hazardous materials mitigation, disaster response, public education and community service.
An equally committed non-sworn cadre of 338 professional support personnel provide technical and administrative expertise in their corresponding pursuit of the Department's Mission.
A total of 1,051 uniformed Firefighters (including 218 serving as Firefighter/Paramedics), are always on duty at Fire Department facilities citywide, including 103 Neighborhood Fire Stations strategically located across the Department's 470 square-mile jurisdiction.
DUTIES
As members of the Los Angeles Fire Department, a Firefighter’s duties include engaging directly in firefighting, emergency medical services requiring assignment to a rescue ambulance, mitigation of hazardous materials emergencies, fire prevention and rescue, and inspections of buildings and properties to ensure compliance with the fire codes. All Firefighter’s are required to become Emergency Medical Technicians (EMT) and may be required to become Paramedics.
As you may be aware, becoming a firefighter is no easy task. It’s not so much a matter of the requirements being too stringent or demanding. Rather, it’s the fact that the firefighter’s job is in such high demand. It’s not uncommon for thousands of candidates to apply for a few potential vacancies.
Although hundreds or even thousands of candidates may apply for the vacant firefighter positions, a large number of such job seekers will be disqualified by the time the entrance process is over. Due to a lack of adequate preparation, many will fail the written examination. Some are out of shape or unprepared for the physical abilities test, therefore, will not succeed or will not be competitive. Some will perform poorly or will fail the oral interview. The medical examination will disqualify a few, and yet more will be disqualified by the background investigation. By the end of the process, those hundreds or thousands of candidates will have dwindled.
Nevertheless, a substantial number of candidates will successfully pass all phases of the entrance process, and they collectively will comprise your competition. Whether you are selected will depend on how well you prepare and how well you perform in comparison with your competition. It’s not a matter of luck. It’s a matter of understanding the entrance process, understanding what the fire department is looking for, and preparing well.
There are definite steps that you can and should take to improve your chances of being hired as a firefighter. We encourage you to study as much preparatory material as you reasonably can. This preparation will better familiarize you with the process and will increase your chances of being hired.
Without a doubt, the firefighter’s job is one of the best jobs in the world. We hope that you will soon find this to be true by first-hand experience.
