How to Apply for a Paramedic Job

Paramedics are required to receive more training than EMTs.

Paramedics work for hospitals, private ambulance centers, police departments, nursing homes, hospice care facilities and fire departments. As a paramedic, you'll be the senior staff member of a team working with emergency medical technicians or "EMTs." As a paramedic, you will be legally responsible for administering the proper doses of medicine to the patients you care for during emergency and non-emergency transport to a medical care facility while assessing a patient's needs and avoiding dangerous drug interactions at the same time. Applying for a paramedic job requires identifying organizations that hire paramedics and then working through each application process.

Things You'll Need

• Internet Access
• Resume
• EMT certification
• Paramedic certification

Instructions

1. Attend the necessary college courses in your state to become a certified EMT. Continue your schooling and training to become a certified paramedic.

2. Make a list of all nursing home or elder care facilities, hospice care centers, ambulance services, hospitals and fire and police departments in your area. Log onto the Internet to see if each of these facilities has any paramedic openings and whether or not you can apply online.

3. Fill out applications either online or in person at each facility accepting applications for a paramedic job. During your interview processes, you may participate in psychological exams to determine your emotional stability under extremely stressful situations and/or physical endurance exams to test your physical abilities. At times, you may be required to lift 125 pounds or more, depending on the situation. You'll also have to be able to interview panicked and sometimes hostile individuals.

4. Follow up with any job applications and interviews you've completed. Widen your job search if needed.

Tips & Warnings

• Your campus career services department might be a good place to help find other paramedic job opportunities. Your local fire and police departments may have internship programs that accept paramedics in-training, allowing you to perform the duties of an EMT to help you gain hands-on experience as you finish your schooling. Networking Internet sites like Linkedin.com may allow you to start networking with other paramedics who might know of unadvertised paramedic job openings.

• As a paramedic, you will literally be responsible for the lives of your patients while the patient is in your care. If you do not have the necessary skills, aptitude or training necessary to work in the environment specified by the employer, do not apply.

References

• Southwestern Medical Center: Paramedic Job Description