Highland Springs Virginia Firefighter Salary And Job Requirements

By definition, firefighters are professionally trained people to save lives as well as properties in case of fire. They’re strong people who can perform rescue operations with style as well as panache. Normally loved by women, these pros are not afraid of anything and literally lay down their lives everyday like policemen. You see the accolades these professionals get, would you not like to become like these brave firefighters?

firefighter career summary Highland Springs Virginia
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Table Of Contents

Just How Much Does A Firefighter Make In Highland Springs?

People express that work doesn’t seem like work anymore if you love what you are doing. On the other hand, passion is not enough to sustain a lifestyle. We all need money so we could move, after all money is crucial. Thus, when it comes to choosing a career, people are always curious about the amount of they might gain out of it. For a few, it is the only motivation in the morning to get up and go to work. People in the community service sector do not get paid as much. Nonetheless, they do have a sense of achievement at the end of the day. {Let’s see how much a firefighter earns.|Without more ado, let’s figure out the income of a firefighter.

firefighter salary Highland Springs Virginia
*Image Credit – BLS.gov

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Around $49,000 is the mean yearly income a firefighter makes. A median of around $46,000 is the median. There are various factors which affect this number such as the size of the population and the education that a firefighter has been through. As we go more, you will know factors affecting salary.

Location Matters

Firefighter’s income can be determined by the place of the department you’re designated. Factored to that are the need of the population of fighters. A location where fire takes place regularly probably will have higher salary in comparison to less occurrence of fire places. Presently, New York pays their firemen the most at around 70% above the national mean. On the other hand, Columbia pays the cheapest at 38% below the national average.

firefighter average salary by state Highland Springs Virginia
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Educational Level

In case you have undergone a study in fire science in high school, you will be eligible to apply as a firefighter. On the other hand, education is highly valued in this area. There are two major reasons for this. One is the reason is proof of your expertise in the field. The 2nd is that the government will need to invest drastically less on you to develop you being an asset. Therefore, they could afford to pay you more. In case you have a degree, whether it is a bachelor’s or an associate’s degree, that would help you gain added benefit. A master’s degree might help a lot more.

Length of Work Experience

Experience is commonly a major key in determining someone’s salary. If a firefighter has a field experience of around Two decades, his earnings may rise to 50% That percentage is quite in comparison with other job which is at 15% to 20% even they have the same length of experience.

Accreditations

Being a fireman, you will need to learn the fundamentals of EMT to even apply for the job. Nevertheless, you can pick to pursue the medical field a bit further and be a paramedic or get advanced EMT training. Possessing a deeper list of accreditations and trainings provide you with a chance of having a higher earnings. It also provides you a “Plan B” if you do choose to change careers later.

Industry

When all’s said and done, you should receive your paycheck. Per BLS records, it’s not the government employers who pay out firefighters more, however it’s the private contractors. Included are firms dealing with production in oil, manufacturing of metal products and waste management. Regardless, the local as well as state government are still looking for firefighting people.

Other Benefits

One of the best things about having a government work is that there is a lot of other benefits that are included with it. You get the services like insurance plan in your health or dental check-up. But you also get covered sick leaves as well as reimbursement for a few specific tuition fees. But then again, advantages may vary from what department you are into.

As you could see, the financial scope of a fireman is not as good as that of a health care provider. But a fireman has got the accolades of an instant savior. Consequently, if you wish to be that hero, know the prerequisites to become a firefighter now!

Highland Springs Firefighter Employment Outlook

firefighter job outlook Highland Springs Virginia
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The job outlook is an essential factor while choosing which career to get into. You would not want 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 info from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The career outlook for public servants is obviously on the rise since because of the ever-growing population. So, what does the future hold for the common fireman? Let’s find.

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There are presently about 300,000 firemen employed in the USA. There is a steady growth of 5% for the next couple of years till 2024. This is the average growth rate of any normal career. Which means that there would be about 12,000 new jobs by 2024. Nevertheless, this also means that there will be that much more individuals hoping to get the job as well. As a result, there would be some competition. This is mainly due to the low education requirements and also the attractions of a public service job. The pay may not be extremely high, but the advantages 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 Highland Springs Virginia
*Image Credit – BLS.gov

How To be A Firefighter

Much like any other expert career to go after, a procedure is crucial to follow. Primary requirement is you must have the necessary education. You have to have your diploma or you’ll never get hired. As being a firefighter, there are not too many education requirements that one needs to possess. Nonetheless, there are a lot of other requirements such as physical, medical as well as legal that you should have to qualify for being a firefighter. Let’s explore these in detail.

Educational Requirements

The basic requirement becoming a firefighter is to complete high school and acquire a relevant degree. The subjects do not matter as such. But if you have fire fighting related subjects earned, that would be useful. That will provide you a backgrounder of the profession you’re about to go into.

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Many of those who intended to become a firefighter, they elect to pursue a degree in college after earning their diploma in high school. The minimum age requirement is EIGHTEEN years. That’s one of the reasons why most of the aspirants aren’t be eligible after graduating in high school. College degrees in fire sciences are a big plus in case you are planning to join the field. Courses which show you how to save people, handle hydraulic tools such as ladders or other related stuff are a major plus.

It is optionally available, you may pursue a graduate studies in that same field. The graduate studies you attain can assist you land a promotion. While gaining your education, you always keep in mind that age limitation qualification of 28 to 30 years old limit for you to be qualified too. Thus, if you want to spend most of your life as a firefighter, you should never focus too much on education.

Paramedic Training

Every single firefighter is required to have an EMT certification. It can be either of these 2, EMT-B or the EMT-Basic. This certifies firefighters that they know very well what to complete in the event of fires or in accidents. The training might last for up to 12 months. Should you decided to be a paramedic at later time, you need to earn education in the field of Emergency Medical Services. Some great benefits of entering this direction are possible increase in salary or added edge over other applicants. In most cases, fire victims rescued are attended by medical specialist that are firefighters as well.

Virginia State Driving License

In many states, employing of firefighter needs an applicant to possess experience in driving. A driving license to every applicant is required so they could be useful in case of unexpected emergency where for an instance no other fire truck driver is available. The driver’s license also validate other information required in application just like for instance the age.

Clean Record

In a few cases, a firefighter is compared as a policeman. They undergo a thorough background check before they are hired. To get hired, the firefighters cannot have a criminal history. If it is found that there was one, or the firefighter was previously arrested, then that applicant is immediately disqualified. Having said that, there are situations where a pardoned individual of his offences are approved however, not all department perform that.

Highland Springs Physical Prerequisites

Firefighters must be physically fit to accomplish thier responsibility at all times. Scenarios like lifting fire victims or objects to free victims arise quite often in rescue missions, consequently, firefighter’s upper body strength is crucial. Not only body strength is need to have, firefighter’s endurance should be high as they should deal a lot of aspects like running even in harsh surroundings. Nobody become a firefighter without undergoing heavy and extremely comprehensive physical examinations.

Free From Medical Ailments

Firefighters must cope with a lot of suffocating cases. They are normally provided with masks to help them cope with such situations however, not always are they so fortunate. Individuals having respiratory problems could not operate such heavy machinery with precision under suffocating conditions. That is why it’s important that an applicant must be clear from any of that respiratory problems.

If you fill up the forms, a lot of boxes should be marked. If you really feel you tick these boxes, then go and see how long it will take you to become a firefighter!

What Does a Highland Springs Firefighter Do?

Firefighters are your daily heroes who work together to put out fires and also help people when they get stuck in such circumstances. They’re around in rescue tasks you see in common incidents, not just fire. Just like what you see in movies, a firefighter saving a kitten in a tree. Aside from the common job they do, firefighters help teach individuals to avoid fire from taking place. They also do the investigation as to the reasons of fire, its origin or cause.

Putting Out Fires

This is the main function of firefighters. They are always in check waiting for a call for their assistance. When they do get a call, they rush to the area in one of their firetrucks which may contain hoses or ladders. Several of the fire trucks are just meant to deliver harmed people.

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Firefighting is a team work. Every single member already has its given job. Some individuals are in charge of handling the ladder as well as rescue operations. Others are in command of controlling the water flow and extinguishing the fire. The same as 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

A certification in EMT is required to all firefighters. This is important given that one of the major tasks of the firefighters are to save people. A firefighter might need this technical know-how if a victim is cornered in fires. Nevertheless, not all rescue procedures that the firefighters carry out are fire related. Firemen or firewomen are the first on the scene with some police officers wherever there are any casualties. Casualties maybe caused natural phenomena or road accidents. The firefighters are supposed to work together and save the victims from additional harm. Oftentimes a firefighter is also a qualified paramedic assisting them provide better healthcare to the victims.

Teach People

Firefighters are usually knowledgeable in fire sciences. Their know-how may vary as to how more firefighters go after this field. By discussing what they know, they help people by educating them how to prevent fire from taking place. This is commonly done right after they visit a fire site and extinguish it. Or else, they also visit schools and also other areas to actively teach individuals about fires, how to avoid fires and if necessary, how to extinguish them.

Investigating Fires

It’s also very important to understand the source of fire. They need to distinguish what caused it so they can avoid further such scenarios. Sometimes, it’s possible that criminals with vicious intent set such fires. It is then the task of the firefighters to investigate and provide more clues to the police officers about who started it. There are firefighters who’re also known as arson investigators that are skilled fire investigation. Along with the law enforcement, they work to investigate possible arsonists.

There is no doubt why we should not call them our life savers and unsung heroes. They do rescue lives by extinguishing fires and they develop also our appreciation to them. Consequently, if learning about their responsibilities fired you up, see what education specifications you need to become one!