After
your submission of your application form, you will get to the next step of getting
hired for a firefighter’s job by way of the firefighter exam package, the written exams which you need to pass.
The
results of the exams are used to weed out a certain percentage of candidates
who shall be considered for the job. The main focus is to be able to score
above a certain level (typically 70%) to pass the firefighter exam package.
Private companies
These
written exams are not generally given by fire departments. Typically, there is
a private company who conducts such exams and performs the necessary things
done in an examination.
Usually,
these exams can last from one hour to three hours in length, depending on the length
and the number of questions asked of the examinees. The candidates are given
enough permissible time to think out their answers to the questions.
Policy
There
are several policies on written exams and they vary from department to
department.
In
some instances, the score you get on the exams will count for up to half of
your overall score in the hiring process.
The
other portion of the score is determined by how well you do on your oral exams.
In some instances, some departments only allow candidates who score in a
certain range to continue in the hiring process.
Measuring abilities
Like
the other exams on other professions (law, medicine, accounting, etc.) the
written test portion of the application process for firefighters include
questions that are specifically designed to measure the candidate’s abilities in many areas.
These
written tests for the fireman’s application process can include questions that
test the candidate’s ability to understand oral instructions, as well as
reading skills and comprehension.
Also
included are questions to test the examinee’s numerical ability, mechanical attitude
and the ability to retain information and processing speed. They may also include
the candidate’s ability to function as a member of a team.
Important skills
All
of these skills are important in performing a firefighter’s function. In effect,
this shows a department how the candidate can perform.
An
important part of the test is the reading component. The candidate shall
demonstrate that he can read something and pay attention to details. (In the
job, the firefighter will need to read, understand, and retain a lot of
information in a short time.)
There
are plenty of study guides and practice exams available to help you. If you
want to do well, you need to invest time to go over the materials that appear
on the exam in detail.
Samples
For
comparison, these firefighting questions cover similar information as most of
the fire department tests and those on the national fire examinations. However, these are not the likely questions
that you will receive on your department or national exams.
.
Included
in the fire fighter tests would be some fire fighting mechanical aptitude exam,
fire fighting spatial and directional orientation exam, fire fighting judgment
and reasoning, fire fighter basic mathematics exam, hazardous material exam and
fire fighting vocabulary, grammar and spelling exam.
