What to do while I'm waiting to get certified? (LA County)

[IanN1]

So I just passed my EMT course. I loved it, my ride along experience was pretty amazing, and I'm excited to start working in EMS.

I know that EMT jobs can be hard to come by here in Los Angeles County, but I was at least hoping to be able to apply for some of them soon. My first semester of nursing school starts in February, and I was hoping to get some kind of job (911 or ER Tech, best case, or IFT if that's all I could get ) in January.

I'm planning on taking the NREMT in a couple days, but it looks like it takes at least a couple weeks to get the copy of my card (assuming I pass the test, of course).

On top of that, once I get my card and submit all the necessary documents to LA County, it looks like it could take up to a month to actually be able to be certified to work here.

(Of course, please correct me if I'm wrong on any of the above)

So, in the mean time, what are my options? I don't have a job, and am scraping by on savings and selling old books on amazon.

I was thinking about just doing more ride-along shifts with a 911 crew, and shadowing some nurses or ER techs at the hospital. Seems like a good way to keep learning and meet people in this field.

Any other ideas?

Thanks for your help,

-Ian

 

[rescue1]

Ride alongs are a good way to build up some experience. The transition from class to an ambulance with real patients can be quite a shock to a new provider (I know my first couple calls I wasn't very useful).

Knowing people is also good and could help you get hired, but remember that SoCal has a crap-ton of EMTs for not that many jobs, so finding a job could be tough.
If you have the time and money, I recommend getting your paramedic at some point too. LA County Fire pays medics very well, and you'll be much more desirable to private ambulance companies.

And as soon as you get your card, start applying everywhere you can. In fact, you can probably ask some places if you can apply before your card arrives.