The Firefighter hiring oral board interview is arguably the most important and often the most stressful part of the firefighter testing process. I have been on dozens of interview panels and have seen the best and the worst interviews by potential candidates. The primary reason for both is the amount of preparation the candidate put in.
You’ve made it through the application process and the firefighter written and physical ability tests, congratulations! You will now move to the most important part of the hiring process, the candidate interviews. You may be surprised to know that you will have one to are many as 3 interviews. You need to prepare for up to each interview. know the priorities and focus for each. We are going to discuss the process and the three types of interviews you will encounter during your firefighter hiring process.
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The Three Types of Firefighter Oral Board Interviews You will Encounter.
- The general panel interview.
- The finalist interview for ranking.
- The Fire Chief interview.
Firefighter Oral Board Interview or should I say, interviews, are the meat of the hiring process to becoming a career firefighter. If you’re new to the process you may be surprised that you will go through two and often times three interviews before you get placed on the final hiring list.
There are two reasons for this. First, it’s important to make sure the candidate is a good fit for the fire service and the department they are applying for. Second, it helps to rank the quality of candidates in a systematic manner.
The General Panel Interview.
The first interview is a panel interview that will have a cross section of firefighters from different ranks. It may also have a representative from the human relations department on the panel as well. The interview will have general questions to determine your ability to work in a firefighter setting.
A career as a firefighter is very unique. The work schedule is very different from most careers and can be challenging for some. Fire crew can work 24 to 48 hours straight per shift, ( Read my post, The Firefighter Work Schedule). Fire crew usually consists of three to four people per truck and a station will often have several vehicles assigned to that station. This creates a dorm living environment that has challenges and expectations.
The working conditions can also be very physically and mentally demanding. Being able to work in a team setting under often stressful conditions is a must.
To prepare for this interview think about how you would answer character questions such as defining your moral and ethical traits such as “what does the word Integrity mean to you.” Another common question is “why do you want to be a Firefighter”. The panel will also ask you about any experience or training you have.
The Firefighter Candidate Finalist Interview.
The finalist, or often called the ranking interview, will dive into how you will fit the department you are applying for. This interview panel will consist of officers on the department. This interview will focus on answers from your first interview as well as the needs and desires of the department. This is where it is critical that you have done your research on the department you are interviewing for. Why are they hiring? Is it simply because of retirements or is it something bigger such as staffing ambulances due to a service delivery model change, or growth within the community they serve.
During this interview the panel will review your resume in detail. You need to know your resume cold. I know this sounds like a foolish statement, however, if you are asked about gaps in your timeline of employment or levels of training and experience you need to answer completely and effectively while being able to justify and gaps or issues. Check out by blog post on writing an effective firefighter resume.
This will also be the time where the panel will ask tough questions about your background. Issues like a DUI conviction, loss of a driver license or any convictions will be asked. Answer honestly, they will find out these issues during the background check. What will be important is to convey that you have made mistakes in the past but you have learned from these mistakes and have not repeated them.
The Chief interview.
This third and final interview will consist of two to three chief officers on the interview panel. This interview will be the final opportunity to ensure the candidate is a good fit for the position. This interview will often be more of a conversation. Following a set of structured questions. What I mean by this is questions will be asked to start, however, expect follow up questions based on your answer. An example would be a question such as “tell us how you can contribute to our fire department?” and “tell us about a time you were involved in a conflict with a supervisor or coworker and had did you resolve the conflict.” During your response to these types of questions it’s not uncommon to be asked to give more detail or be asked a followup question addressing something within your original answer.
You may not encounter a third interview with some fire departments. Many departments will cover this level of questions during the ranking interview. The important thing to remember is all three aspects of the process will be covered at some point during the firefighter candidate interview process.
Becoming a firefighter is a very competitive process. It’s not uncommon to have 100 applications for only a few positions. For the department It’s a tough process to get the list down to a manageable size without missing out on great candidates. This is why it’s so important for you as the candidate to be prepared for the entire interview process.
Interview preparation
Here is a quick list of items to help you prepare for the process.
- Research the department. Learn everything you can about the fire department you are applying for. Size, number of stations, special teams such as HAZMAT response team, growth plans, etc. A few ways to find this information are; Look at their website and social medial pages. Talk to firefighters that are on the department.
- Know your resume. Questions may come up about items on your resume. I would often look at gaps in their employment or schooling timeline. I would also look at experience and training information and ask questions about these items. Not having a good response for why you didn’t complete college or have a two-year gap in employment raises concerns. For more information on building a strong Firefighter resume read Avoid These 5 Resume Mistakes
- Be prepared for the tough questions. If you have something in your past that you’re not proud of such as a DUI conviction. Be honest about it. This isn’t a death sentence, you can still get hired due to mistakes in the past. However, you need to also convince the interview panel that you have learned from these mistakes and will not repeat them.
- Practice. I can’t stress this enough. If you have little or no experience in Firefighter panel type oral interview they can be very intimidating. The best way to get better at them is to do them. Have a friend or family member develop some question, many can be found with a simple Google search. Put together a panel of two to four people and have them interview you. This will help identify nervous traits such as saying a work over and over, fidgeting in your chair or tapping your foot. It will also help you to better organize your response. There are classes and clubs such as Toastmasters that can also help you with your interview skills.
- Dress professionally. Wear nice clothes, like a suit and tie.
After the Firefighter Interview
You’ve completed your first interview, congratulations! Now what?
First, I would suggest, once you’ve left the facility, maybe in your car in the parking lot that you write down the questions that were asked and how you answered them. Write down who was on your interview panel. Was it a chief officer? Was there an Human Resources representative? These notes will help you prepare for your next interview.
Second, write a thank you letter after each interview. Thank the panel for their time and the opportunity to interview for the position. This is also an opportunity to add any detail that you felt you might have left out during the interview, however, be very careful here. This is no time to rehash all the questions and your answers. This is the time to add a possible omission in your training or experience. This is not a time to say things like I should have answered something different.
Testing for a career firefighter position is completive and at times intimidating. By preparing for Firefighter Oral Board Interview process you can quickly move yourself to the top of the ranking on the hiring list. By doing some homework and practice you can enter the interview process with confidence.