The Process of how to:

[Atomsk]

Hello, i have been looking at the whole EMT job, and schooling for a long time. Im about to get into the schooling for it, and was wondering how does the whole process work. (Also i live in California)

What happens after the schooling, how do i obtain a job, what does the job mainly contain, is it easy for a 19 year old like me to get a job as an EMT, in an ambulance or a hospital, or am i going to have a hard time finding a job, also how does the License upgrade work? am i going to need to upgrade it at all (for the ambulance), how much does the schooling take me through? does the college course show you how to do all this, or is it based on just how good the school is.

Thank you all ahead of time, i am very ready for this path down the EMT course, but am obviously still very curious on how the "How to" goes down.

But i do know that i need the be certified CPR and i already got all that down.

 

[firetender]

I don't know that you'll find a "how-to" here as much as you'll find "what might help". A search through here will provide you all the info you need to cause you to run away from California screaming. But you'll also get a very accurate snapshot of the California market and places you might consider looking at.

My suggestion; search through the site, then come back to us with more specific questions or add on to the existing threads and learn from there.

 

[Jambi]

I'm Associate Faculty at a SoCal EMT program. The program is generally 16 weeks in length and requires no prereqs to enter, just admission to the college and a spot in the course.

The difficulty of the course will depend on the person taking it. At my college, it's a 5 semester unit course, and with the curriculum change it's challenging for most folks.

Our once a week classes go 4 hours for lecture followed by 4 hours of skills. A ride out and clinical time is also required.

After the program you will have to take the NREMT exam. Once passed you can then apply for certification in the county you plan to work in.

The market in my area is super saturated with EMT's. Heck, it's even taking paramedics 8 months to get hired! The only saving grace is that with EMS high turnover is a fact of life, especially for EMT's.

Good Luck

 

[DesertMedic66]

Since your in California:

After school you wait to get hired (job market sucks in Cali)

To obtain a job you pretty much have to have your national registry, state/county EMT card, and Ambulance license.

Mostly for EMTs it's driving and vital signs.

A lot of companies wont hire people under 21 due to insurance reasons. But there are some that do.

Ambulance jobs open up more often then hospital jobs.

The only upgrade you may need to due is an expanded scope of practice (depending on your county). For most counties in California you just need your national registry.

Your EMT should teach you everything you need to know about being an EMT besides the driving part.