making a new emt-b employable.

[troymclure]

what courses/skills/etc... will make a fresh from school emt-b more employable?

 

[Arovetli]

what courses/skills/etc... will make a fresh from school emt-b more employable?

Mainly general skills such as reliability, responsibility, professional appearance, punctuality, solid resume/interviewing, networking/references. There was a great interview thread going a few days ago around here.

Aside from that, get some experience wherever you can, volunteering to help learn the lingo and culture, working with patients in any capacity is a plus. For basic EMT, one of the best things I can think of is first aid/cpr instructor and start helping with teaching classes.

 

[Tigger]

Emphasize previous customer service experience during interviews. If you don't have any maybe consider getting a customer service oriented job outside of EMS while you look for an EMT position.

 

[Wheel]

Emphasize previous customer service experience during interviews. If you don't have any maybe consider getting a customer service oriented job outside of EMS while you look for an EMT position.

This helped me a lot. We talked a lot about customer interaction in my interviews.

 

[txmedic5]

Class b drivers license and a clean record.

 

[CodeBru1984]

If you are fortunate enough to have an American Red Cross branch near you that provides first aid standby services, I'd suggest volunteering with them.The experience I gained through volunteering with the American Red Cross as part of their First Aid Stations Team definitely helped make me more marketable/employable.

 

[DesertMedic66]

Mainly general skills such as reliability, responsibility, professional appearance, punctuality, solid resume/interviewing, networking/references.

This

 

[troymclure]

Mainly general skills such as reliability, responsibility, professional appearance, punctuality, solid resume/interviewing, networking/references.

most of that is great, (and ive got it) but it doesnt really help until you get the interview

unfortunately ive got very few references/pertinent resume stuff unfortunately. it doesnt help that since 06 i have not had a supervisor that i worked with for mor than a few jobs at a time. plus all my references work offshore on an on call schedule for 1-60+ days. its hard for a company to get a hold of them.

 

[Arovetli]

no, it helps you all the time. you never know who is watching you and never neglect the power of friends in the right places. it is always difficult to break into a new field, but a recipe for success is to surround yourself with people who are places you want to be. most good jobs take more than just an application to get an interview. its not necessarily the good ol boy system, but there is a vetting process and good employers aren't going to take just anyone

i mean, if it comes down to walking to your local training program and sitting down with the director or walking into an ambulance station and shaking hands with the crew, buying them lunch, and discussing your goals, make these connections and learn from anyone you can. meet with a hiring manager. get to know an employee of a company you want to work at. In the meantime find respectable gainful employment and volunteer at well known places. don't worry about previous references, as long as they can verify your work experience.

the real focus is on making good connections and getting any applicable experience. Break in to the field you want to be in and impress folks with your desire to learn and join the team.

your affiliations speak volumes about you, so put yourself around solid folks and solid organizations, work hard and things will happen.