Aurora Illinois Firefighter Salary And Job Requirements

By definition, firefighters are skillfully trained individuals to save lives as well as properties in case of fire. They’re strong people who can do rescue actions with style and panache. Much like any other macho image profession, like policemen, who offer jeopardizing their lives just to save another. You see the accolades these experts acquire, would you not like to become like these fearless firefighters?

firefighter career summary Aurora Illinois
*Image Credit – BLS.gov

Table Of Contents

How Much Money Does A Firefighter Make In Aurora?

If you value your work, sometimes you feel like you are not working anymore. Nevertheless, passion is not more than enough to sustain a lifestyle. We all need bucks so we can move, after all money is crucial. That is why when you select a profession to pursue, it’s indisputable that you think also how much money you could make from it. For some, it’s the only motivation each morning to get up and go to work. People who carry out community outreach don’t earn much. However, they do have a sense of achievement at the end of the day. {Let’s see how much a firefighter earns.|Without further ado, let us determine the wages of a firefighter.

firefighter salary Aurora Illinois
*Image Credit – BLS.gov

[asd_program_button /]

Around $49,000 is the mean annual income a firefighter would make. A median of around $46,000 is the median. There are various factors that affect this number including the size of the population and also the education that a firefighter has undergone. Below is a list of these aspects and how they could increase or decrease your salary being a firefighter.

Location Matters

The precise location of the fire department is a main element in figuring out someone’s salary. This is due to a few components like – population size, availability of firemen as well as frequency of fighters. A location just where fire takes place regularly will probably possess higher income compared to less event of fire areas. Currently, New York pays their firemen the most at about 70% above the national mean. While Columbia pays the lowest at 38%.

firefighter average salary by state Aurora Illinois
*Image Credit – BLS.gov

Education Qualification

To be a firefighter, one usually just needs to have studied a course relevant to fire science in high school. However, education is highly valued in this area. There are 2 significant reasons for this. This shows you have the needed understanding and knowledge in firefighting. Another one is for the department to spend less on you before becoming an asset in the government. Resulting to paying you more. A bachelor’s degree or an associate’s degree in fire science can help you advance your career as well as earn a lot more. How much more when you have a graduate credentials in firefighting.

Working Experience

Experience is commonly a major key in determining someone’s earnings. In case a firefighter has a field experience of around 2 decades, his salary may rise up to 50% This is extremely high when compared to other careers which normally see a 15-20% rise in the same amount of time.

Certificates and Training

As a fireman, you will have to learn the basics of EMT to even apply for the job. Nevertheless, apart from learning the basic, you can go more and learn the advanced accreditations. Getting these credentials provides you a higher chance of earning more. It also gives you a “Plan B” if you do choose to change careers later.

Industry

At the end of the day, your company signs your paycheck. Based on the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the biggest paying employers for this job aren’t the government but private contractors. Included are companies handling production in oil, production of metal products and also waste management. Regardless, the local and state government are still looking for firefighting individuals.

Other Advantages

In case you are a government personnel, one of the advantages you receive is the benefits you could claim. You get the services like insurance in your health or dental check up. You can also get sick leave benefits. But nonetheless, benefits may differ from what department you are into.

Being a physician might have a higher earning as compared to being a fireman. Nonetheless, at the end of the day, you become a hero in someone’s eyes. Consequently, if you want to be that hero, know the prerequisites to become a firefighter now!

Aurora Firefighter Career Outlook

firefighter job outlook Aurora Illinois
*Image Credit – BLS.gov

The job outlook is a vital factor while deciding which career to get into. You wouldn’t wish to pick your favorite career option simply to realize that it going down the drain in a couple of years. You could find out such information from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The career outlook for public servants is always on the rise since due to the growing population. So, what does the future hold for the common fireman? Let’s find out.

[asd_program_button /]

There are currently about 300,000 firemen appointed in the USA. There is a steady progress of 5% for the next few years till 2024. This is the average growth rate of any normal profession. Which means that there will be about 12,000 new jobs by 2024. Nevertheless, this also implies that there would be that much more people looking to get the job too. Thus, there would be some competition. This is primarily due to the low education specifications and the attractions of a public service job. The pay might not be very high, however the benefits make up for that. It’s approximated that there might be about 100 individuals competing for the same job by 2024.

firefighter job outlook by state Aurora Illinois
*Image Credit – BLS.gov

Steps To Becoming a Firefighter

You have to follow a particular procedure to join any career. Main requirement is you should have the necessary education. You have to have your diploma or you will never get hired. Being a firefighter, there are not too many education requirements that you need to have. However, there are a lot of other requirements such as physical, medical as well as legal that you needs to have to be approved for being a firefighter. We’ll go further in details to better understand the requirements.

Education Requirements

The fundamental requirement to become a firefighter would be to complete high school and have a relevant degree. The subjects do not matter as such. However , if you have fire fighting related subjects attained, that would be very helpful. It will also educate you on how to become a more effective firefighter.

[asd_program_search_bar /]

A lot of those who intended to be a firefighter, they choose to pursue a degree in college right after earning their diploma in high school. The minimum age requirement is 18 years. That’s one good reason why most of the aspirants aren’t be eligible after graduating in high school. If you wish to have choices later if you decide to become a firefighter, much better select a degree with subjects in firefighting, you may need them. Courses which show you how to save individuals, control hydraulic equipment such as ladders or other related stuff are a major plus.

It’s optionally available, you may pursue a graduate studies in that same field. The former ones are needed to get promoted to bigger positions. While gaining your education, you always remember that age limit qualification of 28 to 30 years old limit for you to be qualified as well. Therefore, if you wish to spend most of your life as being a firefighter, you shouldn’t concentrate too much on education.

Paramedic Training

All the firefighters should have this EMT certification. The one required is the EMT-B or the EMT-Basic. This helps firefighters tend to victims in accidents or fires. A year is needed in order to complete this training. If one desires, they could decide to pursue further studies in the field Emergency Medical Services and become a paramedic. This will help them gain an edge over other candidates and hopefully, a better salary. There are also several medical professional firefighters who are able to take better care of people after they have been rescued from the fires.

Qualified to Drive Vehicle In Illinois State

Many states need the candidates to be able to drive. Thus, they need their applicants to be a licensed driver that may help them when person is needed to drive the firetruck to the area. It also serves as an ID proof to confirm the applicant’s age.

Legal Track Record

In most cases, a firefighter is compared as a policeman. The same as policemen, firefighters also go through life-style check before getting employed. To get hired, the firefighters cannot have a criminal record. If you think you possess previous records, then much better not to pursue this career as you will right away be disqualified. Individuals who were pardoned for their crimes are commonly accepted, nevertheless, not all fire departments admit such individuals.

Aurora Physical Prerequisites

Among the main characteristics that a firefighter should have is physical strength. Cases like lifting fire victims or objects to free victims arise much of the time in rescue tasks, consequently, firefighter’s upper body strength is important. Not only body strength is need to have, firefighter’s endurance must be high as they need to deal lots of aspects like running even in harsh environment. All firefighters undertake rigorous physical examinations both in the academy and before it.

Free From Medical Conditions

Firefighters must deal with a lot of suffocating scenarios. They’re usually supplied with masks to help them manage such cases however, not always are they so lucky. When you have history in your respiratory, that would affect your efficiency. As a result, applicants are checked accurately for any such illnesses which may cause them harm in such cases.

There a number of boxes that must be ticked while picking out a firefighter. If you feel you tick these boxes, then go and see how long it takes to become a firefighter!

Aurora Firefighter Work Description

Firefighters are your daily heroes who work together to set out fires and help people when they get stuck in such circumstances. They’re also in command of rescue operations for common everyday challenges. Just like what you see in movies, a firefighter saving a kitten in a tree. Apart from this, they’re also in charge of educating individuals to avoid further fires. In certain cases, they are supposed to check causes of fire and dig deep into the case due to the chance of an arsonist.

Extinguishing Fires

Certainly, fire extinguishing is their major task. They’re always in check waiting for a call for their services. When they get a call, they rush to the area in one of their firetrucks which might contain hoses or ladders. A few of the fire trucks are just meant to deliver wounded people.

[asd_program_button /]

At the scene of the fire, every person has a distinct job. Some individuals are in charge of handling the ladder as well as rescue operations. Others are in control of controlling the water flow as well as extinguishing the fire. Just like any other team which has a leader ordering the operation, their group is headed by their commanding officer. Given that they work in shifts, each unit has their own commanding officer.

Saving People

All firefighters must be qualified as an EMT. This is necessary given that one of the main tasks of the firefighters are to rescue people. Most of the time this comes in handy when taking care of people who are trapped inside the fires. Nonetheless, not all rescue operations that the firefighters take on are fire related. There are situations that a fireman comes first in the scene. Casualties maybe caused natural phenomena or road accidents. Firefighter must work to save the victim. This is where a firefighters knowledge in EMT will come in handy.

Educating People

Firefighters are commonly educated in fire sciences. The amount of knowledge depends on which degree they have pursued in the field or which course they have studied. Thus, they help a lot of the people by educating them about ways to avoid fires. This is commonly performed just after they visit a fire site as well as extinguish it. In a few other circumstances also, they visit schools or other public sites to teach and sometime perform demonstration on what to undertake in case of fire.

Investigating Fires

It is also imperative to know the cause of fire. Understanding the causes can assist firefighters avoid fire for the same scenario happen again. Oftentimes, it’s possible that criminals with vicious intent set such fires. Working together with law enforcement officers, it’s firefighter’s task to figure out what causes the fire or who possibly started it. There are firefighters who’re also known as arson investigators which are experts fire investigation. Along with the police, they work to check into possible arsonists.

As you could see, there is a wide number of reasons to contact these people our everyday heroes. While extinguishing fires in different locations, they ignite one in our hearts. Consequently, if you feel you would like to be like them, start filling up the list!