resume/cv, cover letters

[ryanmcadam]

hi,

just wondering if anyone knows how to write a fire department perffered resume. Something that would help to better my resume from another. any ideas?
thanks

Ry

[Sneddy]

First this is a great site, and thank you to all who have posted the very helpful info I have read.

I, as most wannabees have been hoping for a fire fighter job for some time now. I started applying when I was 18 years old and now that some years have passed I understand why I was not hired, although I did very well on the exam. Experience and maturity hold weight!!

I now have 5 years experience as a trauma nurse with all the certifications. I also have an ACZ licence.

I would love to put these skills together in a resume and cover letter that have the right kind of impact. I have been a life long learner which does not always have a certificate at the end, and that makes a lot of my skills difficult to apply to a resume. (ie. carpentry work, plumbing, auto repair ect.)

Could anyone help me with this? Perhaps there are web sites that have good examples or perhaps those of you who have been hired could offer suggestions.

[DoubleHelix]

Just put education first, then work experience then volunteer work. Those are the 3 main things. Don't use a microsoft word template and don't put your hobbies.

I'm still new to the whole recruitment package but in the cover letter tell them what youve done, what youre doing now and what youre going to do.

[FFWannabe]

A friend of mine who was hired just over a year ago gave me some great advice.

First, list everything, your resume is not going to look like one you would hand in for a "business" position. And list things that you may not find relevent... because they might be. I was told to list the Bronze medallion, bronze cross and NLS certifications I earned 12-15 years ago, anything that could be relevent is going to help you out.

Second, this gentleman did use a microsoft template. He listed everything, and used bullets for everything. They receive hundreds and hundreds of resumes, they aren't going to read a paragraph, but they will look at the bullets and make sure you are given a point for each one that is relevent.

Third, update it often. If you sent in a resume in April and by May you've taken a course and remembered a few things, add them in bold and make reference to them in the cover letter.

Fourth, they told me to list your hobbies, if they are relevent, but you do not have certifications for them.. for instance, I do some free of charge personal training for a few people, I am in Basic Training for competitive kickboxing, I am a distance cycler, a runner and a swimmer... I have no certification for any of these, but they show that I am active and can convey that I am interested in the health and well being of others.

Fifth, the cover letter should convey your desire to be a fire fighter, "work within the Fire Services Team", you can mention some of your personal qualities that you think make you a good candidate... for example, my last paragraph describes why I believe I would be a valuable member of this organization, my commitment to my community and my desire to ensure the safety and well being of those living in it.... basically, be honest about your desires and why you want to be a fire fighter without saying, "I want to be a fire fighter because..." your passion can come through while still adhering to proper business cover letter format.

Anyway the cover letter I had no problem with, but the help I was given on my resume added a few more points for me. My friend said when he got to Drill school someone from the hiring and recruitment office "had to meet him" because his resume was so impressive he had to be near God.... hahaha... he actually listed every certificate he earned in Pre-Service, instead of just saying "Pre-Service" and it did him a world of good!

Just remember, that all of your certificates and courses need to be listed.. these are your points.. if you don't sell yourself, why are they going to "buy" you... right? I have always believed... if you don't believe in yourself, no one else will!

Okay.. pep talk over.. get writing that resume!! hahaha! ;)

Sue :)

[Rescue78]

Sneddy

If you don't have a lot of fire relate experience or overrated certificates, build a skill oriented resume based on your experiences and hobbies.

For example, after your education and jobs (only relevant ones) your next topic can be:

SKILLS:

- As a trauma nurse, I constantly perform well in high stress conditions.
- I am known by my peers as a problem solver.
- My avid interest in carpentry and mechanics allowed me to develop great manual skills.

Etc. Etc.

Always, always always address all the points from the job posting. Example, if they ask for good communication skills, abillity to perform in stressfull situation etc.... Have something in your resume that will say that you have those specific skills.

A resume is supposed to have ideally only 2 pages. The hardest thing to do is to cover everything but yet have a well spaced resume in an easy to read font. You can throw a few extra points in your cover letter. Don't let anyone convince you that a cover letter is not very important. You should spend as much time on it as you spend on your resume.

Hope that helps.

[intrepid]

hey Sneddy i was just wonder what your acz license is ?? ive never heard of it before

thanks and take it easy:)

[FFWannabe]

Hey Intrepid, let's try that again (I posted and deleted... eeeks)... ACZ is equivalent to an AZ (Ontario), which is equivalent to a Class 1 in most provinces and DZ (Ontario) is the same as Class 3 in most provinces as well, with the applicable letter or numbers (depending on province) for the air brakes endorsement.

Sue :)

[dentedhead]

It could also be an A -Tractor Trailers etc-C-Bus/Coach not school purpose,that also covers DGF F is required to drive an ambulance and we all know what the Z is for,well us ontarians anyways.

Dentedhead

[Sneddy]

Ya, Tracktor-trtailer, bus not for school purpose and air brake.

Ed:)

[skidder]

ya manitoba is class 1-7.... 4 is emergency vehicle 3 would be if you have a double axle(hope people know what im talkin about cause i don't have the tech. term in my head) like a ladder truck... then so on to class 1-tractor trailer and then there is air endorsement with/without slack adjuster.

Phew....

[Hally]

Just wondering if anyone on here would be willing to look over the old resume and cover letter and let me knwo what you think. I cant send it.. thanks for your times boys and girls.
Rye

[infernobuster]

Sure, ill look it over and give you a hand with it if youd like.

I sent you my email address in another message.

[t_lag]

Hey guys, I was just wondering how you would structure a fire fighting resume. Would you put more focus on fire fighting experience, work experience, education?? This might seem like a stupid question but I have no idea how I would go about making a fire fighter specific resume.

[Hally]

Hey.. i'm goign to send you a Private Message with a copy of my resume.. a while back i had the same problem and i got some help wiht it and well i think it must of worked cause i've been on the job for a while now! haha.. anyways.. good luck brother.

[Raker]

Ive got an awesome resume template. My chief was very impressed with it and said when he hired me that my resume showed that I really put effort into it and wanted the position. I'll see if I can scan it and post it somehow. It basically focused on firefighting training and experience as well as medical response experience and training. It has the following sections:

Highlights of Qualifications which gave a brief overview of experience and qualifications. Relevant Experience which was broken into two sub categories, Emergency Response and Public and Community Relations. The next categories were Employment History, Education and Specialized Training and Ongoing Education which showed a desire to continue learning which is huge in this field. All info in categories was in point form to simplify it and make it easy to read.

I will try to get the template on here , maybe it will help a few of you.

[OnFire]

That would be wonderful!!!
Its always nice to look at another persons and compare it to your own. You can always improve something but may need to "steal it" from somewere else.

[Zokambaa]

The cover letter I wrote saved my ass... I gave some good stories why I wanted to be a firefighter and what motivated me, anything relating to the fire service that I may have done (it seems like everything I have done over the years could have prepared me in some way for aspects of firefighting) I included jobs, sports, swim rescue,how I worked with the sports teams motivating, training, yadda yadda yadda.. I think I ended it with some light comment about how I am a pretty good cook too and how it would come in handy at the fire house...

now I royally screwed up my oral interview the first time.. not so bad that it was a boot to the ass, but they read the cover letter, it let them see that I had something they were looking for but the formality of the oral interview just wasn't bringing it out... I got that second chance, had I not done the cover letter, I wouldn't be where I am now.

If anyone thinks the cover letter is a waste of time... well, all I can say is it helped me..



hi,

just wondering if anyone knows how to write a fire department perffered resume. Something that would help to better my resume from another. any ideas?
thanks

Ry

[ericandles]

I am currently working on putting my resume together for fire departments in the Lower Mainland of BC. Does anyone have any tips of how to make my resume stand out? Things to do or not to do? I would appreciate any input people have to offer. Thanks in advance

[BCFFFV]

It's very hard to say without knowing just what qualifications you have.