Go through on-the-job training.
After accepting a firefighting job, the incoming recruit receives paid training at a training center or academy for several weeks. Then the recruit undergoes a probationary period lasting as long as three years, during which time most firefighters continue to train.

Jennifer White, a firefighter/paramedic in Oak Brook, Illinois, describes her two years on the job as a time of constant education. “I have been from one school to the next since being hired,” she says. “First was nine months of EMT training, then two months at the Fire Academy, followed by 40 hours of Fire Apparatus Engineering… and now I am finishing up paramedic class. Plus, I work my regular shifts.”

PROFESSIONAL INSIGHTS

Cheryl Horvath, a battalion chief with 14 years of experience on the Tuscon, Arizona force, offers advice to fellow female firefighters who are breaking down barriers in what she calls ‘the last male bastion.’ "Don’t be afraid to rely on others for help,” she says. “Asking for help is not a sign of weakness. Don’t sacrifice your integrity or morals, but do understand that you’ll be under a microscope. Be prepared to be the only [woman] for a while."

Yet for White, the benefits far outweigh any challenges. “There is so much pride and honor wrapped up in being a firefighter. When a little girl in the car next to me at a stoplight sees a woman driving a big red fire engine, I smile and wink at her and think, ‘We can do anything, little one!’”