Firefighter Resume: Free Template & Real Examples

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As a Firefighter you usually want to put out the flames, but it’s important to show that your professional passion burns brightly on your resume! Our tailored resume templates can help you light up your future career options.

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Learning how to write a resume is a vital skill for anyone. An effective resume will captivate any potential employer and keep them wanting more. 

If you’re a Firefighter who’s looking to sound the alarm and grab the attention of recruiters, then focusing on creating an interesting resume should be your priority.

In this article, we will detail how to write the perfect professional firefighter resume by explaining:

• How to write an attractive opening statement
• What experience you should mention and how
• What to include in an entry-level Firefighter resume
• Most impressive skills to add

The advice above along with our easy-to-use resume builder can save the day when you’re unsure of how to create your application.

Keep reading this article to help yourself create the perfect job application and join the 1 million plus proud Firefighters in the United States.

Before getting started on your resume, it’s a good idea to take a look at what successful firefighting candidates should include in their applications. 

Here is a firefighter sample resume to get a general idea of what the final product should look like:

Resume Example

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[Samuel Johnson]

[Firefighter]

[Lynwood, CA 90262 | 555-555-5555 | samuel.johnson@randomemail.com]

Summary

Prolific firefighter with over 12 years of experience in the field. Trained and certified in fire safety, prevention, and suppression. Skilled in providing first aid, having assisted over 100 victims of various disasters, including fires and earthquakes, with a 99% survival rate. Specialized in vehicle maintenance and operation.

Experience

Firefighter & EMT

Los Angeles Fire Department, CA

2019 – Present

• Helped optimize the first aid response protocol, resulting in 15% faster response time for victims of fires and related disasters
• Created a training guide for new recruits, adopted by 3 additional fire stations
• Increased outreach of the fire department.
• Lead public events to raise awareness of the importance of fire safety and prevention

Education

Bachelor in Fire Science 

University of Florida | Gainesville, FL

2014 – 2019

Skills

• Strong work ethic
• Sprinkler Specialist
• Vehicle maintenance
• First aid trained

Languages

• English – Native
• Spanish – Intermediate

One of the most important decisions you will need to make when writing a Firefighter resume is choosing the appropriate format to use. This will influence how you write your resume and how you present all of your vital professional information.

There are 3 main format types that are most commonly used in the industry:

• Reverse-chronological format
• Functional format
• Combined/Hybrid format

The ideal format to use would be a hybrid one. What makes the hybrid format especially useful for Firefighters?

It lays out these parts of your profile:

• Diverse skill set: The hybrid format can encompass a broad range of tasks such as medical assistance to equipment maintenance and community education.
• Progression as a firefighter: Firefighting often involves a clear career ladder, it shows off your added responsibility and any promotions you’ve had.
• Emphasis on training: The hybrid format can also emphasize certifications and types of training completed which is essential for a Firefighter to be hired.

By highlighting both your experience and skills your resume will be a hit with a lot of employers. 

Best Format for Entry-Level Firefighters

Skills and certifications are critical for Firefighters and that means an entry-level Firefighter resume that places emphasis on skills over experience can be successful. 

Use a functional format to do the following:

• Show off your skills directly related to being a Firefighter
• Display your Fire Academy training and EMT certification
• Mention any transferable skills such as communication

Even as a rookie, you can use this strategy to impress and maybe even get a chance over a more experienced candidate. 

At the top of the resume, you have to include relevant contact details. This includes your name, last name, professional email, your town and state, and phone number.

This should be followed by a well-written resume profile. The profile acts as a brief and concise introduction. There are two main types of resume profiles, namely:

• Resume summary
• Resume objective

While seeming similar to each other, the two focus on fundamentally different career aspects.

A resume summary is a broad overview of your experience and abilities. It is an effective way to condense a long history of employment and achievements. So, it is meant for experienced Firefighters who’ve served on the frontline for a long time.

However, what if you are just getting into the industry and have no experience? In that case,  as a Firefighter with no experience, an objective is probably your best bet. That way you can focus more on your career goals and aspirations.

Firefighter Resume Summary Example

Since a resume summary is a reflection of your experience, it should be unique and tailored personally to you.  This example should give you an idea of the tone and style of a good resume summary.

This is a great personal opening for the resume. Not only does it provide data, but it also paints a clear picture of the years of experience, certifications gained, and outlines what they can contribute to the fire department.

With this firefighter resume summary, the applicant uses generic phrases that aren’t specific or compelling.

It also includes unrelated and vague information, which takes up space meant for other important information.

How to Write a Firefighter Objective Statement With No Experience

Like with a summary, the objective has to personally refer to you. However, in this case, you’ll need to focus on your:

• Relevant skills
• Motivation to succeed 

You should have a good look at the Firefighter job description before writing your resume to completely understand what should be in your objective. 

Take a look at this example of a job description:

Act swiftly to emergency alerts, including fires, medical situations, and potential hazards; participate in proactive fire safety initiatives and skill development; ensure upkeep and readiness of fire equipment and station facilities.

To tailor an impactful resume objective, candidates should identify and utilize keywords present in the job description. These keywords are pivotal terms or phrases that summarize the primary duties and expectations of the role.

From the above description, some keywords to focus on include:

• Act swiftly
• Emergency alerts
• Proactive fire safety
• Skill development
• Ensure readiness

Include your skills in your objective that can demonstrate you are able to carry out responsibilities that you would have. 

Entry-Level Firefighter Resume Objectives

To correctly show that you are capable and willing you’ll need to put together the right resume objective. 

Here’s a good example.

With this objective, the applicant has shown that they are skilled, despite the lack of any formal experience, and they speak directly to the job description shown above. 

This also shows why volunteering and community service are vital in helping you progress career-wise.

Here, the applicant may be enthusiastic and have the potential to succeed, but they have nothing to show for it. There is nothing special about them that separates them from the other potential employees.

If you have worked full-time as a Firefighter, then now is the time to show off how productive you’ve been when you update your resume.

That being said, you should be concise and keep it to the most relevant information. 

To that end, some advice that will help you is:

• List out the most recent position you’ve held, and work backward in reverse-chronological order.
• Include the company, location, and dates for each entry
• Elaborate on your personal contributions and achievements at that company including statistics.
• Use keywords that are specific to your field and position
• Examine the firefighter job description and include keywords from it where relevant

One of the main things to remember is to focus on accomplishments and achievements that you’ve done. Do not list the responsibilities you had at work, since those are already expected and aren’t as impressive.

Professional Firefighter Resume Examples: Experience

The experience section can be a make-or-break moment for many applicants. So, you have to nail it in order to secure the desired job.

First, let’s see an example that might not make the interview pile.

The above sample firefighter resume entry, but it lacks crucial details. There is no mention of how long the firefighter has worked at the place they listed, what training they gained or delivered, what type of truck they operated, or what level of responsibility they had.

Additionally, there aren’t any significant contributions made to the place of work. There is nothing distinguishing about this particular employee, so why should the fire department hire them over anybody else?

This example goes above and beyond what is expected from a typical firefighter. It shows how productive the candidate has been in the past and how they can be an asset. 

This example of an experience section presents a valid case of why a potential recruiter should consider this applicant over the others that may be competing for the same position.

Entry-Level Firefighter Resume: No Experience? No Problem

Having years of experience as a firefighter is undoubtedly beneficial to the odds of landing a new job. However, what about if you are just starting and haven’t worked at a fire department before?

Well, it might be good for your case to include previous volunteering work. This is especially true if you’ve volunteered at a fire department before. Even if you weren’t getting paid, the experience is hugely important.

Other activities that would look good on a resume would be: 

• Internships 
• Extracurriculars
• Similar high-intensity jobs. 

Think of anything that has taught you transferable firefighter resume skills which you could use in the field, and express how a certain activity helped you acquire it.

Keep this section brief as an entry-level candidate your resume should be focusing more on your skills.

Firefighter positions don’t usually require any specific college degree. Typically, a high school diploma will suffice in your education section. However, if you do hold any kind of degree, it wouldn’t hurt to list it as well.

No matter what your formal education looks like, you have to list your information in the following way:

• Type of qualification
• The institution name where you earned it
• Start and end of your studies
• GPA (if above 3.5), extracurriculars, and other information (if you lack professional experience).

Firefighter Resume Sample: Education Section

Let us look at a few examples that can help visualize this in action.

While it’s good that the applicant is qualified in the field, it still doesn’t tell the employer the details.

The recruiter doesn’t know when you completed your studies, or where. Overall, it’s a lazy example and shows a lack of attention to detail.

Let’s see a better education section example from a firefighter resume.

In this section, the employer is presented with more complete information. In addition to the type of degree and the years of study, it also tells the reader how successful the studies were as their GPA was especially high.

If you are still a student make a mention of that. Write down all relevant information, but make sure to indicate that you haven’t finished your education yet. 

Otherwise, misrepresenting your education history is a bad look for your application.

Let’s face it Firefighting requires a lot of skills to be successful. It’s listed as one of the most stressful jobs a person can have, meaning both soft and hard skills will be critical.

But, what do you include in a resume skill section? Again the best place to start is with the job listing or description.

That way you know what relevant skills you should add to your skills section.

Firefighters need to be strong, patient, be able to stay calm in moments of pressure, and work extremely well as a team. It’s a very demanding job both mentally and physically after all.

If you have a hard time thinking of a good list, you can look at the following list of skills that can present you as a capable Firefighter:

With these skills you can demonstrate that you can handle incredibly tense situations.

Apart from the most essential details there are usually some extra pieces of information that you can add. 

For Firefighters, one of the best things to include is any: 

• Certificates you have acquired
• Languages you speak
• Relevant interests

Mentioning relevant certificates such as first aid or that you have a hobby that keeps you in shape like doing CrossFit, can help you push your application over the line.

Don’t underestimate the power of adding another resume section if you have something interesting to add. However, remember to keep it truthful, it’s never worth lying on your resume about speaking another language or having a skill you actually lack.

Firefighter Resume Sample “Other” Sections

If you decide to include any “other” sections in your resume, you need to keep them brief.

They shouldn’t be the main feature of your resume and overshadow more important sections, such as education or experience.

This is an example of what you could include:

Certifications

• Certified Electrical Safety Worker—NFPA, 2021
• State of New York Firefighter and EMT Certifications, 2020

Languages

• English – native
• Italian – intermediate
• Russian – beginner

We’ve certainly thrown a lot at you in this article. However, following the guide and focusing on the essentials can help you craft a compelling resume.

Remember to keep your resume concise, but also information-dense. Include the most recent and relevant information that the employer would need.

It’s essential to include the elements we’ve gone over, such as:

• An experience section with quantifiable data and past success
• An attention-grabbing resume summary or objective
• Skills that demonstrate mental and physical strength and strong communication abilities.
• Certifications, especially those related to fire safety and first aid

If you’re able to add all of these parts and take advantage of our online tools you’ll have a much easier time creating a job-winning resume!

For more emergency services job application advice, check out our Lifeguard resume.