Question concerning eligibility

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Luke Smith

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Quick question. Work history aside, if I have only a GED and basic EMT certification, can realistically expect to find employment in the field. I’m enthusiastic about it but I’m 30, just got laid off, and don’t want to begin the process if no one is going to actually hire me. Any advise would be greatly appreciated, FYI, I live in the Pacific North West. Thanks guys!
 
Luke Smith said:
Quick question. Work history aside, if I have only a GED and basic EMT certification, can realistically expect to find employment in the field. I’m enthusiastic about it but I’m 30, just got laid off, and don’t want to begin the process if no one is going to actually hire me. Any advise would be greatly appreciated, FYI, I live in the Pacific North West. Thanks guys!
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Realistically the jobs do still exist. It is certainly harder with EMT than with EMT-P to find employment but there are still jobs. The medical field doesn't tend to lay off a lot of people. You can also check for ER or monitor tech type jobs too. Having your EMT helps to obtain those.
Good luck!
Kip
 
Thanks allot. It's proven difficult to find any concrete info without knowing someone in the field. School advisors seem to know less than I do. Every little bit helps.
 
Luke Smith said:
Quick question. Work history aside, if I have only a GED and basic EMT certification, can realistically expect to find employment in the field. I’m enthusiastic about it but I’m 30, just got laid off, and don’t want to begin the process if no one is going to actually hire me. Any advise would be greatly appreciated, FYI, I live in the Pacific North West. Thanks guys!
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Are you more concerned about the GED or the EMT? Most companies that hire EMTs want "High school diploma, or equivalent.
 
Luke Smith said:
Thanks allot. It's proven difficult to find any concrete info without knowing someone in the field. School advisors seem to know less than I do. Every little bit helps.
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I know it is easy for someone to say "be patient" when they are not the ones in need of a job but it's true.

Pound the pavement and keep asking. Try and meet some of the local EMS folks. They will know who's hiring. Try and "Glad-Hand" as much as possible. Even do ride-a-longs. If people like you they will remember you during peer type interviewing (seems to be the future in EMS hiring).

I will tell you something about the EMS field........ even though we can be fickle and tear each other apart at times.......... EMS has always and I mean always fed my family.

Kip
 
A GED and EMT certificate is most likely all you'll need for an EMT-Basic job. It really depends on where you're located, but you have a good chance of getting an EMT job. You just need to be persistent and determined. Good luck!
 
It's worth doing research into local private or municipal EMS companies in your area, and consider calling them up-- ask how often they have job openings, what their model hire looks like, etc.
 
MMiz said:
A GED and EMT certificate is most likely all you'll need for an EMT-Basic job. It really depends on where you're located, but you have a good chance of getting an EMT job. You just need to be persistent and determined. Good luck!
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Completely agree with Matt here. We can talk a lot of generalities here. And generally speaking, this is a non-factor for you. Organizations that actually hire EMT-Bs are looking mostly only for warm bodies with a patch. If they had some significant concerns over education, they wouldn't be hiring an EMT-B in the first place, would they? It's just a three week first aid course taught at the 8th grade level. And there is no evidence that I am aware of that shows GED holders are any less intelligent than their HS grad counterparts, so again, it's a non-issue.

The question is not whether or not you can get an EMT job. The question is whether or not you can get a real EMS job, which I would hope is your ultimate goal. And, as Matt points out, where you are located is the primary factor that will determine this. If you live someplace where there are no EMS jobs for basics (because EMS is run by fire departments or an all-paramedic agency), then it doesn't matter how you did in high school, you aren't getting a job.

That, of course, leads to the following question; do you plan to become a paramedic? There is no career as an EMT. It's just a temp job. And where you may ultimately run into problems is getting into paramedic school. The better programs are either college based or require college prerequisites for admission. That means you're going to have to take some pretty serious tests over general knowledge to get accepted into the local junior college. If you are confident in your knowledge, then that won't be a problem, but just another hoop to jump through. But if you struggled in high school, and struggled to squeak through the GED exam, then this could end up knocking you out of the running. And if you are stuck at EMT for your entire career, you have no career. That said, if you are able to get into and pass paramedic school, you will definitely find a job.

Matt was right on the money when he mentioned your location. It makes all the difference. That is the key to whether or not you will ever even get an EMT job, much less a real EMS job. But if you are willing to move to where the jobs are, you won't have any trouble getting an EMT job of some sort, even with a GED. Good luck!
 
OK, back from watching the Obama address…

Wow, thanks for the feed back guy’s. I’m planning on pursuing basic certification for now; I need to work, but am definitely planning on perusing the big “P” down the road. I have some collage experience and academics have never been a problem for me at all, I was a just little to impatient in my younger day’s. I’ve got excellent work history and am ready, willing, and very able to do what it takes to get my foot in the door. Thank you very much for the excellent, real world, advice; exactly what I was looking for.
 
I'm no lawyer but I do believe legally a GED is the equivalent of a high school diploma. If I'm correct you would have a heck of a law suit against them if they didn't hire you because of the GED (good luck proving it though). At any rate I've haven't seen any companies that won't accept a GED.

Go get your EMT now before the masses realize that there are very few cutbacks in medicine and flood the market. Not sure where you're from but typically the larger cities have a revolving door of EMT's, you might be running interfacility all day but it's a paycheck and experience for that glorious 911 job.
 
Oh yes, glorious 911 job. getting covered in puke, piss and blood.
 
What drove you to EMS?

I mean besides the great pay, excellent benefits and fantastic work enviorment.
 
Was it working closely with EMS at the Bar that got you excited? Where in the Pacific NW are you?
 
CAOX3 said:
What drove you to EMS?

I mean besides the great pay, excellent benefits and fantastic work enviorment.
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LOL. Best bit of sarcasm I have seen in some time.
 
Luke Smith said:
Wow, thanks for the feed back guy’s. I’m planning on pursuing basic certification for now; I need to work, but am definitely planning on perusing the big “P” down the road. I have some collage experience and academics have never been a problem for me at all, I was a just little to impatient in my younger day’s. I’ve got excellent work history and am ready, willing, and very able to do what it takes to get my foot in the door. Thank you very much for the excellent, real world, advice; exactly what I was looking for.
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Colleges do recognize a GED to meet the high school diploma requirement.

If you already have some college, you are way ahead of many EMT(P)s who have never given college a thought past high school since both the EMT and EMT-P certs are easy enough to get without a lot of book learnin'.

However, I understand the unemployment situation and some of our best recruits came from other fields after being laid off. From the airline industry we got pilots who knew what responsibility was all about and fit very well working as a Paramedic. Not everyone grows up with a dream of being an EMT, Paramedic, RN or RRT. Many high school and college counselors know little about all the different professions. Some people just happen into a career and find the right fit.

marineman
Go get your EMT now before the masses realize that there are very few cutbacks in medicine and flood the market.
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Unfortunately healthcare is not immune to this economy and there have been numerous cutbacks including the loss of many jobs. Fortunately other health care professionals can still make themselves marketable with their college degrees. They too may also have to relocate.

But, in the larger cities there should be no problem finding a job as an EMT for employment until you can complete your education as a Paramedic. Many enter the profession for the lights and sirens, the uniform and the TV image of EMS from the numerous shows. As soon as some find out being an EMT has something to do with patient care and touching sick people, they are gone.

Originally Posted by smvde
Oh yes, glorious 911 job. getting covered in puke, piss and blood.
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Luke Smith,

By some of the statements made on this forum like the above for an example, you may find that many are disgruntled in their chosen jobs and maybe they are not cut out for any medical field. The forum allows them to express their discontent. It is a shame some did not realize what they were getting into before they entered the profession. So, you can take note of these posts as a little warning that you will be dealing with patients at their worst and when they are most vulnerable. Hopefully you won't be the type that will be disgusted when an elderly person has a bleeding wound from a fall and may also vomit and/or urinate during their inure. Many can not control their bodily functions especially when hurt and are embarrassed by it. Not all will be the idiots you have seen in your cab or at the bar. A little compassion along with professionalism can lead to a rewarding career in some medical field.
 
marineman said:
Go get your EMT now before the masses realize that there are very few cutbacks in medicine and flood the market. Not sure where you're from but typically the larger cities have a revolving door of EMT's, you might be running interfacility all day but it's a paycheck and experience for that glorious 911 job.
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The "few cutbacks" thing really does not apply to EMS. In fact, we see serious cutbacks all the time. Most cities only have one EMS employer to begin with. Since every EMT in the entire area wants to work for that employer, they have many more applicants than they have jobs. And every time another city dumps EMS on their fire department, hundreds or even thousands of EMTs and paramedics can end up jobless, with no place to go. A great many EMTs and paramedics never, ever even find an EMS job after graduation because those jobs just aren't that numerous. And I don't know a single person who went to either school because they were looking forward to a rewarding career as a transfer jockey. In fact, that is exactly why the IFT companies have that revolving door. Nobody wants to do it. Take that into consideration before you commit to this field.
 
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No one wants to be a "transfer jockey"? I actually prefer working IFT. Maybe that's just me. And what is CCT if not IFT?
 
Sasha said:
No one wants to be a "transfer jockey"? I actually prefer working IFT. Maybe that's just me.
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It is just you. And that will change once you are a medic. ;)
 
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