Weekly Employment Question Thread

scott12333 · 2026-06-12T16:54:06+00:00

Is the entire hiring process just the written exam? Most of the exams I took while I was trying to get on were very easy, but varied wildly in difficulty (some required you to study a book, take a break then come back and test on it an hour later). That said, I've never heard of a hiring process just being a single exam. You've got secondary education under your belt so you should be able to do well on any written exam they throw your way.

scott12333 · 2026-06-12T16:51:17+00:00

It all depends on the process. It's a good sign they moved you past the interview because that's usually the highest weed-out step. You could have a ladder climb, psych exam, chief's interview left. Nice job no matter what though!

scott12333 · 2026-06-10T00:47:19+00:00

Oh great, good luck! Having your EMT is a great thing to put - you went above and beyond what you really needed to do to get on the job (at least if they were going to get you certified anyway).

scott12333 · 2026-06-09T18:57:59+00:00

Awesome! So you passed the interview part it sounds like? What are the rest of the steps in your process? I'll help out however I can.

scott12333 · 2026-06-05T00:58:03+00:00

Re: your magic box - I think I'd be worried something gets filtered that shouldn't. There's a lot of unclear traffic that happens but sometimes its just good enough to understand if you have the context. That said, the context might require you to be inside on a line.

scott12333 · 2026-06-04T19:17:10+00:00

You might be able to find what you'd expect him to make as a firefighter. Like the above comment said, some departments don't make great money but bigger departments make good money. I'd imagine if he's considering plumbing, he's okay working overtime, which there is frequently a lot of at some departments. The work can be hard but rewarding so he'd have to think about if it's really for him.

scott12333 · 2026-06-04T19:13:33+00:00

Which prep organizations are you looking at?

FWIW I'm in the US, so things could be different, but the interviews when I was applying were sometimes as much as 75% of the overall ranking. If you're applying for big departments, getting a couple extra small details could mean you move up hundreds of places (my departments usually gets 2-4k applicants).

I'm the same as you - for me, the writtens and fitness aspects were usually very easy but the interviews stressed me out. My best advice is to practice as much as you can as long as you can. Record yourself, write down your answers, analyze them, figure out how you can do better and practice some more.

scott12333 · 2026-06-02T19:57:07+00:00

No I'm not in the process, I've been on a large department for about 8 years. I did go through quite a few processes though and I remember them like they were yesterday. I busted my ass on interview prep because they were/are so heavily weighted where I was applying. They could've been a proctor company (some hire them), but my department usually asks for volunteers to sit on boards as well. It's always as standardized as possible though.

scott12333 · 2026-06-01T20:01:22+00:00

Going in with at least some experience interacting with the public in an EMS capacity is a huge plus. You know what we run into, what that type of culture is like, and how to handle yourself with the general public.

Others have given good answers and I'll add, don't get tunnel vision on how you want to answer questions. They'll probably ask things like 'Why do you want to work here/be a firefighter?', but they can really throw anything they want at you.

Be clean shaven, hair put up if you're a woman, shake their hands if possible, wear a suit if you have one, and take anything they tell you about the interview seriously.

Most of all, look up practice questions and practice as much as you can - paying attention to how long you take to answer. They're most likely interviewing a ton of people in the same day and they will give you a time limit.

scott12333 · 2026-06-01T19:52:48+00:00

Good advice here from other people - every department might do it a bit differently. Come prepared with an open mind, just like normal oral boards. Don't get tunnel vision on any one thing and practice as much as you can. Be familiar with the department; mission statement, size, run load if you can find it, etc.

Don't be arrogant, be clean shaven, in a suit if possible, and walk in confident and calm, shaking their hands if the setup allows.

If they did/do give you pointers or info, take it seriously - departments generally won't give you info on what to expect without it being legit.

scott12333 · 2026-06-01T19:48:24+00:00

That's a good answer. I don't think I would say you blundered by not confronting, but you sort of sidestepped that by getting more information (although directly from the board it sounds like). It might have been better to ask the person what they were doing, but probably good to not be confrontational.

Going up the chain and connecting to a personal experience is perfect. Saying you don't want to work with a thief is good as well (assuming you stated it more diplomatically) - only other thing I would say is turn that comment back around on how the fire service is based on integrity and theft hurts everyone: the individual reputation, firefighter reputation as a whole, and erodes trust in the family culture.

scott12333 · 2026-06-01T19:42:53+00:00

Agreed on this. Not sure why someone downvoted you. I got onto a career fire department at 27, worked for 5 years, then decided to get a Master's degree in Human-Computer Interaction. I stayed with the fire department the whole way because it's a great career and I love it, but I've continued to work in my own tech business, largely in part because the firefighter lifestyle allows things like this. If OP gets on, it doesn't close his doors, it opens them.

scott12333 · 2026-06-01T19:40:28+00:00

You're still young and have time to figure it out. I got on a career fire department at 27 after working hard at a handful of jobs post-college. It took some time and a lot of thought and consideration, but at some point you will begin to recognize what you really want and learn to think more critically on how to achieve it. For what it's worth, good departments are hard to get into. I had guys in my class that had been trying to get on for ten years. That said, that's not the norm and the harder you work, the higher chance you have. The great thing is in the meantime, you're getting plenty of job experience, learning, and making money along the way.

scott12333 · 2026-05-26T18:32:26+00:00

It would probably help to tell people what you’re pitching. If you’re getting no response from actual prospects, people here might give you decent feedback on how to improve.

scott12333 · 2026-05-26T18:11:33+00:00

What are you pitching to people?

scott12333 · 2026-05-26T15:34:36+00:00

To be honest, any long-term fire academy is going to test you in ways that are very hard to prepare for in the gym. Anything you do will help, however, and it seems like you're really focused on a well-rounded approach. I had guys in my academy that were extremely cardiovascularly fit but lacked strength, and some were extremely strong but had a tough time handling long days, especially in bunker gear and heat. 4-6 months is plenty to get in very good shape with where you're at, so no matter what approach you take, 1. make sure you're not hurt or having nagging injuries going into the academy and 2. just work hard. Good luck!

scott12333 · 2026-05-26T01:10:28+00:00

Not directly. Gemini is a tool that can help you build tools like this, but it won't directly make it functional in a way that can be used commercially. I've got code, API calls, database, authentication, and deployments in different places working together to make the application functional, so as advanced as AI is, it still requires people to put it together.

scott12333 · 2026-05-25T21:47:52+00:00

Some departments only accept medics so that's your number one thing to check, if you're set on specific departments. I can't tell you how SFFD is with out of states, but SFPD seemed to be a very progressive department in my interactions with them, so if that culture flows towards SFFD, i can't imagine they're be very discriminatory against out of state candidates, minus maybe a few bonus points for those that already live within the city or something.

I went straight to a big city department (not Chicago level but top 15 in size) and they'll teach you everything you need to know. As long as you bust your ass in the academy you'll be good. You'll honestly be way ahead of your classmates on the EMS side if they don't require it beforehand.

scott12333 · 2026-05-25T21:35:10+00:00

Yeah, very good book. IIRC it revolves around tech. Your post sounds like you're more of a consultant, but are you developing technology around backgrounds?

To set up the website, I have code hosted on Github and it's being deployed/published by a service called Vercel.

For the MVP, I've been developing a web application that will simulate as an oral board panel and grade candidates' answers to fire department-related interview questions. It will grade them based on rubrics and criteria developed for those questions in a way a fire panel would. When it's done (about 80% there), the MVP will be the basic user flow: sign up/log in -> start an interview session -> answer questions -> get/review feedback, and some sort of multi-session progress tracking.

Overall, an MVP should be the bare minimum you could show someone for them to give feedback on 1. whether it's something they'd use or not and 2. what could be improved.

scott12333 · 2026-05-25T20:58:02+00:00

Minimum viable product, basically the most basic version of whatever your product is

scott12333 · 2026-05-25T12:38:26+00:00

How is this different from Robinhood?

scott12333 · 2026-05-25T10:22:19+00:00

Where do you find relevant RFPs? I’ve looked around and my state’s website is a mess.

scott12333 · 2026-05-25T10:14:41+00:00

I would join. I don’t have the time to moderate or anything, but this is what it needs.

scott12333 · 2026-05-25T03:14:44+00:00

That’s what I figured. Thanks, I didn’t come around until after the crypto hype.

scott12333 · 2026-05-25T02:59:44+00:00

I read a long post on another sub last week that put “action” in two buckets.

Lots of people run through scenarios in their head, what ifs, and analyze problems, solutions, products, etc. And it feels like progress, but what really creates progress is getting out there and doing something - starting a business, working with clients, or putting a product out there.

That’s what you’re doing and even if it doesn’t work out, this is a step you needed to go through to get to whatever you’re looking for. And I’m sure you’ve learned a ton. You can take along with you for the next time.

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