Firefighter Trainee Class #40

Trainee Class #40

**** We will only be accepting 1500 applications****

Howard County Fire & Rescue Services is an EMS-based combination fire and rescue service that partners highly-trained career and volunteer personnel to provide a full range of emergency response services and community risk reduction programs. Comprised of 9 bureaus and various specialized teams—to include Emergency Operations, Logistics, The Fire Marshall, Special Operations, and Tac-Medic- The Howard County Fire Service offers a wide range of career options. Howard County Fire & Rescue is also one of the few career fire services that operates and manages its own paramedic program. Additionally, promotional opportunities are more easily attained through the Department's Leadership, Education, Assessment, and Development (LEAD) Program. To add to its appeal, HoCo Fire resides within one of the top counties in the country

Howard County is located between Washington, D.C. and Baltimore, MD with a residential population of 310,000 citizens. The County's main population center, Columbia/Ellicott City, MD., is ranked in Money magazine's "America's Best Places to Live." It is the only community ranked among Money's top ten best places to live each year for the past decade. The County's school system is highly ranked in the state. The library system is ranked in the top one percent of the nation's libraries.

The County provides an excellent benefits package and retirement plan.

Applicants who have a National Registry Paramedic Certification or Provisional National Registry Paramedic Certification seeking to serve a county rich in diversity and quality of life are encouraged to apply.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES/MINIMUM REQUIRED EDUCATION/EXPERIENCE:

This is firefighting and emergency response work at the entry level, learning basic firefighting, emergency vehicle driving, rescue and emergency medical techniques and methods. An employee in this classification is assigned to and must satisfactorily complete a series of required training classes held predominately at the James Robey Public Safety Training Academy.

Typical Examples of Work

• Attend and satisfactorily complete all prescribed courses of training;
• Study fire prevention, fire protection, emergency medical techniques, rescue techniques, and any other subjects that may be required;
• Demonstrate basic life support skills as an Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) and if qualified, at the Emergency Medical Technician Paramedic (EMT-P) level;
• Demonstrate basic mechanical proficiency using hand tools;
• Participate in daily physical fitness and conditioning exercises;
• Participate in regular, hands-on demonstration of skills in all training courses;
• Independently read and write;
• Successfully execute tasks while working as a member of a team.

Requirements:

• Must possess a valid Motor Vehicle Class C Operator's driver's license issued by the State of residence;
• Possess a High School Diploma or GED;
• Must provide documentation of eligibility to legally work in the United States;
• Must be eighteen (18) years of age on or before December 15, 2025.

Persons selected for this training class and all future training classes shall not use tobacco products in any form throughout the term of their employment whether on or off duty. Any use of tobacco products during the term of employment shall constitute grounds for disciplinary action up to and including termination.

Automatic Disqualifiers

The following automatic disqualifiers will cause the processing of the applicant to be immediately discontinued:

Criminal Record:

1. Conviction or found guilty of, entered a plea to or received probation before judgment for any felony or sex offense.

2. Conviction or found guilty of, entered a plea to or received probation before judgment for any offense involving larceny, fraud, concealment, bad checks, embezzlement, perjury, or similar offenses involving dishonesty.

Driving Record:

1. Current driver's license suspension.

2. Driver's license suspension within past 12 months. (December 15, December 15, 2025)

3. Conviction or found guilty of, entered a plea to or received probation before judgment for drunk driving or driving under the influence within the past five years. (December 15, December 15, 2025))

4. Conviction or found guilty of, entered a plea to or received probation before judgment for a misdemeanor hit and run.

5. Conviction or found guilty of, entered a plea to or received probation before judgment for three or more traffic violations within the past twelve months. (December 15, December 15, 2025)

6. More than three Division of Motor Vehicles demerit points.

Drugs:

1. Any conviction or found guilty of, entered a plea to or received probation before judgment regarding the sale, manufacture or distribution of any controlled substance or dangerous drug, as defined by state and/or federal law.

2. Conviction or found guilty of, entered a plea to or received probation before judgment for possession of a controlled substance or dangerous drug, as defined by state and/or federal law within the last three years (December 15, December 15,

Military:

1. Dishonorable discharge from the military.

2. Bad conduct discharge from the military.

PREFERRED EDUCATION/KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS AND ABILITIES:

Preference may be given for the following:

• Paramedic
• College degree
• Military veteran
• Bilingual

Testing

Applicants selected to take the written examination will be notified at the email address on the application submitted for this posting. Only those applicants notified to take the test will be admitted to the testing site.

Tentative Written Exam Dates:

Times to be announced

(Dates subject to change at the Department's discretion)

February 2, February 8, 2026

• The written exam takes approximately three hours.
• Applicants who pass the written exam and are selected to move forward will receive notification via the email address provided on the application and are responsible for adjusting their email filters to permit receipt of our notices.

Applicants selected to move forward will receive additional information at that time.

In addition to the written examination, applicants must successfully pass a panel interview, background screening, medical and psychological evaluations, and the Candidate Physical Ability Test (CPAT). The selection process may take four to six months. Applicants will be notified at each step in the process.

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Should you experience technical difficulty, please contact NEOGOV technical services at

For more information, contact the Fire & Rescue Recruitment Section at:

HIRE(4473)

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Howard County Government is an Equal Opportunity Employer.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

TO APPLY: You must complete an employment application online to be considered for this recruitment. Resumes cannot be substituted for completion of the job application work history. No paper applications will be accepted.

Selected candidates may be subject to drug screening, background screening, and reference checks.

At time of application, please submit a copy of any college degree, coursework, licenses, or certifications that you have referenced on your application. Applicants who have education obtained outside of the U.S. may need to provide proof of the equivalent U.S. education as determined by a foreign credential evaluation service, such as the National Association of Credential Evaluation Services ) or World Education Services: International Credential Evaluation ).

Howard County Government is not sponsoring employees in application of the H-1B Visa or providing an extension of an existing H-1B Visa. All applicants must be legally authorized to work in the United States under the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986.

Howard County is an Equal Employment Opportunity Employer, and we are committed to a workplace that values diversity, equity, and inclusion. The County prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, age, sex, ancestry, creed, national origin, disability status, genetics, marital status, military service, sexual orientation, gender identity/expression or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws. Applicants requiring accommodations during the hiring process should contact the Office of Human Resources directly at Requests for accommodations should not be attached to the application.