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Job Interview Preparation Tips for EMS Professionals

At the interview stage of the selection and hiring process you already have demonstrated you have the basic qualifications for the job. A primary purpose of the interview is to confirm that your personality and professionalism matches with the employer need and workplace culture. Job recruiters will listen to your answers, but they also pay careful attention to how you present yourself during the face-to-face process.

EMS Manager Aaron Scharf recently posted a Twitter message about a paramedic candidate that really dazzled during the interview process. I asked Aaron to explain what the candidate did to dazzle and what others could learn from this candidate. Aaron share these Everyday EMS Tips that all EMS professionals could use to dazzle during their next interview for a new job or promotion:

1. Present a clean and professional resume that has no unnecessary “bells and whistles.”

2. Make the resume concise and easy to read.

3. Supporting documentation – certification cards and licenses – in order and as requested.

4. Clean, easy to read copies of all supporting documentation.

5. Professional body language including a “freshly pressed suit, firm handshake, and solid eye contact while standing tall and confident.”

6. All of the above supported by “stunning” academic performance and an “excellent letter of recommendation from a well-respected figure in the industry.”

How do you stack up on this list? Where do you have areas to improve and what are you doing to get there? One important additional area to start thinking about is your online presence. When colleagues, current employers, and potential employers search for you online what do they learn about you?

Session 3 of EMS Boot Camp (EMS Career Development) explores advancing your EMS Career. Listen to the recorded session or read the transcript where EMS Professionals Jamie Davis, Jim Hoffman, and Greg Friese discuss the most essential tips and actions to advance your EMS career.

By Greg Friese

Greg Friese, Stevens Point, Wisconsin, is an author, educator, paramedic, and marathon runner.

Greg was the co-host of the award winning EMSEduCast podcast, the only podcast by and for EMS educators. Greg has written for EMS1.com, JEMS.com, Wilderness Medical Associates, JEMS Magazine, EMSWorld.com and EMS World Magazine, and the NAEMSE Educator Newsletter.