Firefighter Resume Example

After reading this article, you'll feel confident creating a firefighter resume that effectively showcases your relevant skills and experience. The article will take you through the key steps of creating a resume that presents your key skills, qualities and career achievements in a format that employers favor. It will also help you tailor your resume according to your unique skills and experience level. Read on to learn how to write a perfect firefighter resume, from the advice of careers experts at Jobseeker.

What to include in a firefighter resume

It's essential to include a few core sections in your firefighter resume, while there are also a few optional sections you can make use of to strengthen your application. If you're lacking relevant work experience, you might choose to add sections that showcase your skill set earlier than in a traditional resume layout. These sections might include projects, education, hobbies and interests, skills and other optional sections.

While the content and format of your resume may vary depending on your experience levels, it's important to always include the following sections:

Resume Header with Contact Details

Your firefighter resume header should contain your name and contact details. These include your email address and phone number. If you have a LinkedIn profile, you can also add that, to give employers the chance to learn more about your skills and experience. It's not necessary to include a photo or any other personal information. Make sure your resume header is as brief as possible and doesn't take up too much valuable space. Choose a clear, professional design that sets the tone for your application.

Make sure your email address appears as professional as possible, and doesn't include anything like nicknames, inappropriate language or personal information. If it does, set up a new email account with an address based on your name or initials, and use that for your job applications. Always double-check your contact details are up-to-date before sending your resume.

Resume Profile

In your resume summary, write a short paragraph that highlights two or three of your key achievements and skills for firefighter roles. You could also call this section 'resume objective' or 'personal profile'. A resume summary covers your career experience to date, while a resume objective focuses more on your ambitions for the future. However, make sure you keep your resume summary short and snappy, and focused on the skills and experience listed in the job description.

Alternatively, you could use this section to reference your objectives and ambitions, and how this role would fit into your career journey.

A good resume summary reflects the job description and highlights some of the key skills required for firefighter roles, while leaving the reader with an impression of your unique qualities and strengths. The most effective resume summaries also provide evidence to back up the claims made in them. See below for some great examples of what to include in your firefighter resume summary.

Conversely, an ineffective resume summary would include generic, unspecific information on your skills and experience, while failing to provide any useful information on what makes you a unique and interesting candidate. See above for some examples of things to avoid when writing your firefighter resume summary.

Hard and Soft Skills

Adding a list of your key skills provides a quick reference for the reader of what you can bring to a firefighter role. Skills such as emergency medical technician (EMT) or teamwork and collaboration are particularly useful for firefighter jobs. Additionally, read the job description to make sure your skills match those required for firefighter positions. You could also include some unique skills that help you stand out as a candidate.

How to include hard skills on your firefighter resume

Hard skills are specific skills related to the job you're applying for. They include particular abilities, technical skills and industry knowledge that relate directly to jobs as a firefighter. Furthermore, an extensive list of hard skills helps to make a compelling case for your firefighter job applications, as they show employers your understanding of the firefighter role. Add up to five key hard skills that show you're an ideal candidate for the role. It can also be beneficial to add context to each skill, showing how you've used it to positive effect in your career to date.

For an effective resume hard skills section, focus on the technical skills that are most essential in the job description, and that match your specific expertise. Some examples of the best hard skills for a firefighter resume are listed below.

Soft skills on your firefighter resume

In your list of soft skills, add any personal strengths, qualities or transferable skills that make you a good fit for the job. Soft skills are often less specific to different industries, but that doesn't make them any less important. In fact, you can develop soft skills throughout your career, and they tend to be suitable for various roles and professions. Aim to include approximately five soft skills that reflect the skills listed in the job description.

A good soft skills section would include skills that match the job description, and also reflect your key strengths and qualities. See the graphic below for an indication of what to include in a strong soft skills section for a firefighter resume.

Education

Your resume's education section provides space for you to list your highest and most relevant qualifications for firefighter roles.

Candidates aren't usually required to have a degree for firefighter positions, but it's still worth listing your highest or most relevant qualifications. If you have a recognized certification or qualification, such as HazMat Operations, be sure to include this. You might also want to include any educational achievements that showcase fire suppression techniques or hazardous materials handling.

List every relevant qualification, including the name and level of the course, the name of the school, college or university, its location and your graduation date. You can enhance this section by adding bullet points that show any outstanding grades, awards or achievements and any specialist subjects you studied. These details can make you stand out from other candidates.

If you took part in any volunteering or you were a leader or member of any university societies, you could also mention these in your education section.

Certifications

In your certifications section, list any professional certifications or licenses that are relevant to working as a firefighter. You could list accreditations for certain professional roles or licenses for certain activities that help to make you a strong candidate. Therefore, add any professional licenses or certifications, along with valid dates that show they're still valid.

Take a look at some example certifications for a firefighter resume below:

Employment History

In the next section, list your employment history focusing on the most relevant previous roles and achievements that showcase your firefighter skills. For each entry, list the job title, the name of the employer, its location and the dates you worked there. Add each job in reverse-chronological order, starting with your current or most recent role.

Under each job entry, add several bullet points highlighting your responsibilities and achievements. Consult the job description for a list of the key requirements for the role and make sure your work experience section showcases how you meet these requirements.

An effective resume work experience section is one that constantly echoes the skills and experience listed in the job description, and shows how you used your skills to positive effect in each job. Each bullet point should be carefully crafted to showcase a particular skill or achievement relevant to firefighter jobs, with evidence to show the value you added. There are some examples of strong resume work experience sections below.

In the graphic above you can see a great example of what to avoid when writing your resume work experience section. Ineffective work experience sections tend to focus too much on everyday responsibilities over skills and achievements. If you use vague descriptions of activities and fail to back up your achievements with evidence, you're likely to fail to make an impact on the reader.

Optional Resume Sections

As well as the main sections of a firefighter resume, optional sections can help you prove your credentials to employers. Add any of the sections below that help you showcase your key skills and experience.

Personal Interests

Listing your hobbies and interests can reveal key qualities that some employers may value. Your hobbies and interests are useful for a firefighter resume if you want to show a different side to your personality, or to stand out among other candidates. They can also be valuable if you're a junior candidate without much relevant work experience. Don't include hobbies and interests in your resume unless they showcase a specific interest or aspect of your personality. You'll want them to add something to your application that you can't add elsewhere.

Volunteer Work

If you're lacking relevant firefighter work experience, volunteer work can help to show you still have the relevant skills. Include the title of your volunteer role, who you volunteered for, as well as the dates you carried out the work. Provide brief details of your responsibilities and the impact you made.

References

Standard firefighter resumes don't tend to include references, but you might find them requested occasionally. Check the job advert to see if you'll need to add references to your resume. Add two or three professional references, and be sure to approach each referee before you include them.

Best strong verbs for your a firefighter resume

Using strong action words to make your resume resonate with the employer. Choose from the list of words below to make the best possible impression.

If you need help creating a resume that impresses HR managers, take a look at Jobseeker's professional resume templates. You can also access beautiful cover letter templates that help your application stand out.

Example of a firefighter resume

Now that you know everything that needs to go into your firefighter resume, let's review an example resume that you can use as a guide when creating your own:

How to make your resume ATS compliant

Applicant tracking systems (ATS) are increasingly taking responsibility for the management and processing of job applications, helping hiring practices to become more efficient. This can include screening resumes by scanning and ranking each application according to how closely it matches the job description. There are several things you can do when writing your firefighter resume, to give yourself the strongest chance of ranking highly in the ATS stage and progressing through the recruitment process.

Follow these simple rules when writing your resume, to make sure it's ATS compliant:

• Adopt a traditional structure for your resume, such as a reverse-chronological format or a functional format. These are likely to be the easiest layouts for ATS software to scan.
• Use keywords throughout your resume that reflect the job description, so ATS resume scanners can recognize a strong connection between your skills, and those in the job description.
• Include clear headings that make it easy to identify each section of your resume. This will help any ATS software navigate your resume during the scanning process.
• Use design elements that help make your resume more readable. These might include white space, clear, professional fonts and subtle color accents to help certain elements stand out.
• Use simple, concise language to keep your resume to a maximum of one to two pages in length. This will make it easier for ATS software to read.

Key points for your firefighter resume

Writing a strong, impactful resume is about using your experience to demonstrate your relevant skills and achievements. You can do this through your work history or other resume sections. Select a resume format that suits your experience levels and the job you're applying for, and make sure you tailor your resume for each application.

Use Jobseeker's resume templates, other tools and resources to create an application that impresses employers. Sign up today to access a wealth of valuable resume and cover letter resources. Whether you're a junior or senior candidate, a professional cover letter can help to grab the attention of the employer. Jobseeker's cover letter examples were created by careers experts to provide useful tips and ideas for your cover letter.

Sources:

(1) Writing a Resume, California Department of Human Resources: https://www.calhr.ca.gov/employees/Pages/resume-tips.aspx

(2) Resumes, Cover Letters and Job Applications, New York State Department of Labor: https://dol.ny.gov/resumes-cover-letters-and-job-applications