Not so great on paper...

unleashedfury said:
Read your book,,, feel free to ask questions. and didn't know changing your name was so difficult. I guess it depends on the reasoning, If you were married use that as your scape goat for employment history gaps.. I was a homemaker,, Hubby liked it that way.
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it is when you have trivial tickets from 07 & 09 that have added up to very expensive "oopsies" lol you can't change your name if you have ANY outstanding matters with any court for any reason.
And know I wan't married, i unfortunately have my step dads last name, he was not a very nice man (ill leave it at that) and no ones seen or hear from him in over ten years yet i'm still stuck with his last name. so i'm going back to the name i was legally born with.
 
unleashedfury said:
Read your book,,, feel free to ask questions. and didn't know changing your name was so difficult. I guess it depends on the reasoning, If you were married use that as your scape goat for employment history gaps.. I was a homemaker,, Hubby liked it that way.
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ask questions? on here? does that mean i an add you to my friend list? :beerchug:
 
JanetDoe said:
What kind of things are they going to be looking for at that level'? are they going to go back into every little waitressing job i had through high shool? lol or are they going to focus on youre EMS schooling, character & potential mostly? I have gaps in my employment that i can't really explain and i'm not going to fabricate a resume for a job that means more to me than waking up tomorrow. it's just this vicious cycle that's got my head spinning.
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I know from experience interviewing candidates I would look at experience in the field, character, potential, and what kind of future they want. If they just want to be a I show up for work do the minimal and go home dosent strike me as motivated move on. If your showing me a new EMT that wants to progress be part of a system that is willing to grow and have you grow with them then you might be the candidate. being that your 26 I assume you have 8 years out of high school. I wouldn't be too worried about jobs you held in high school especially low paying that were just probably to buy you new shoes or your way at the local keg party.
 
Most of the fire departments around here do lengthy background checks: they will talk to family members, neighbors, ex GF/BF. Criminal history, polygraph tests, social media checks.
 
Wanna-be-fire/medics leave cashews and empty sun flower seeds all over my ambulance. You should start eating sun flower seeds.
 
well that's very helpful. thank you. do you feel better now that you got that condescending comment off your chest?
aren't we in ems to help people? what possess a person to chime in with some silly negative and pointless comment? just curious what the gratification is in that. didn't you're other ever tell you if you can't say something nice don't say anything at all? lol
stay calm
have a wonderful day
 
JanetDoe said:
well that's very helpful. thank you. do you feel better now that you got that condescending comment off your chest?
aren't we in ems to help people? what possess a person to chime in with some silly negative and pointless comment? just curious what the gratification is in that. didn't you're other ever tell you if you can't say something nice don't say anything at all? lol
stay calm
have a wonderful day
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Seriously? He took one poke at wanna be fire medics. It's nothing to get worked up about.

To answer your questions though, the best thing you can add to your resume is experience. Once you get certified, apply everywhere. Getting an EMT job is not rocket science. You need a professional looking resume that highlights your positive attributes, and then send it anywhere and everywhere. Then when you get a job, keep looking for one that allows you to progress.

If you want to be a fire medic, good luck. Those jobs are very difficult to come by. If you want to have a broad scope and get paid well, you might think about leaving SoCal. I know that's hard to do, but you have to figure out what is most important to you, then plan and work towards achieving that.

There are a lot of great resources here, no matter what you decide. Continue to read and learn here, and try not to get offended so easily. Jokes will be made here, and most of the time the poster will have no ill intent.

Edit: also, as long as you haven't had any legal trouble or trouble with past employers (being unreliable, stealing, etc), then you haven't screwed yourself yet. Even if you have, that can be overcome by distancing yourself from those problems.
 
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I apologize.. it's not so much that I got offended but found it to be a little mean and certainly not helpful. I guess I'm a bit touchy on account of I've been hitting brick wall after brick wall trying to get somewhere with a decent career. My problem at the moment is the resume. Yes I get that LAFD is near impossible and I'm not opposed to relocating at all. But none of that is an issue untill I have a resume that's going to get me to an interview. I have a few stupid problems, but problems none the less, that are really holding me back. We all make poor choices on our way to adulthood, unfortunately I can't just put that on a resume. I got a few helpful suggestions that will hopefully pan out but i'm still pretty scared that all this training & schooling & constant exhaustive worrying will all have been for nothing and i'll be right back where I started, nowhere to go and going there fast. : (
thank you for taking the time to voice something. Everyone has a different goal, different reason & different opinion on how and why they got where they are today... so the more I can get the broader my knowledge & options wil become.

you guys have all been so kind & patient, i really can't thank you enough. can't wait to be a part of the camaraderie of EMS. I"m excited just to be making friends on the forums here : )
 
Where are you in California? Bay Area? Not too many volunteer experience three. You could try Rock Medicine. To join, you go to an orientation that they have about once a year usually mid April either in Mt. View or Marysville.

You could get some easy certifications out of the way too such as FEMA classes. Usually ICS 100, 200, and NIMS 700 are the bare minimum for most ambulance companies.

Also I am assuming you are gonna try to get an EMT ambulance job. Straight up, just apply everywhere. Don't be picky about whether it's 911 or not.

For interviews, I've had a couple of bad ones personally. I have not successfully gotten the job I wanted. First, I know customer service is huge! They suck that stuff up. Then also evaluate your life. Why do you want to be an EMT/paramedic? Why do you want to be in Fire? Where do you see yourself in the future? What are things you have done to help the community? Think about your education, what you have done with your time off, and what you have to offer. It's best not to prepare for interviews by trying to determine what kind of questions they are gonna be ask, but by thinking about things in categories prior to your interview. Look up generic interview questions eg "Define customer service", which I've been asked in three interviews.

For your resume, I hear firefighters love resume paper. It's the kind of paper that you can hold up to light and see some sort of text through it. Meh.

For your interviews, bring color copies on individual paper of everything you have.

Research who you are apply for. Sometimes they'll specifically tell you what to do eg what to wear to an interview, what to bring, what are the qualifications, etc.
 
The FEMA & ICS certifications... are thos considered Continuing Education Units?
 
JanetDoe said:
The FEMA & ICS certifications... are thos considered Continuing Education Units?
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It will depend on your certifying agency, In my state they count as Other CEU's I think 2.0 a piece.

another one to look over is the hazmat awareness, pretty much a gimmie, take the course and take the test. Its generally a little more in depth vs. the hazmat information you get in EMT basic school you can do it online for free here

www.saferesponse.com
 
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