Fire Department

In order to apply for a Fire Recruit position with the Cincinnati Fire Department, applicants must meet certain basic requirements. Once those basic requirements are met, applicants must be able to fulfill all conditions of the hiring process. Failure to comply with any portion of the hiring process or misrepresentation will disqualify the applicant from further consideration during the application process.
 

Requirements:

Age:

• Must be at least 17 years old to apply and not reach age 41 by date of appointment.

Education:

• High School diploma or GED.

Possess:

• A valid driver’s license by appointment date.

Background:

• If you have a FELONY criminal conviction you must follow the State of Ohio applicants with criminal convictions process and notify/send the results of the investigation no later than 30 days after written test. If this information is not received, you will be eliminated from the process under section 2A/2B

  Go to the following link for additional information:  https://www.ems.ohio.gov/enforcement-conviction.aspx#gsc.tab=0

  Senate Bill 337 became effective September 29, 2012, and created a “Certificate of Qualification for Employment” (CQE) in Ohio Revised Code 2953.25.  The CQE will allow persons living in the community who have a previous FELONY or misdemeanor conviction to apply to the court to lift the collateral sanction that bars them from being considered for employment in a particular field.

  Go to the following link for additional information regarding Certification of Qualification for Employment: https://www.drc.ohio.gov/cqe

Residence:

• Must be a US citizen or legally able to work in the US. must be willing to reside in counties adjoining Hamilton County Ohio

Written Test:

• The written test is typically given on a weekend. Applicants should plan to arrive no later than 1 hour before the scheduled start of the test. Plan to be at the test site for 4-5 hours. Each applicant must present a valid driver’s license. If you arrive late, for any reason, you will not be admitted and you will not be able to continue on with the hiring process. No exceptions. You will not be allowed to use your notes during the test and no cell phones are allowed in the testing site. The test takes approximately 3 1/2 hours to complete. The written exam covers areas such basic math, reading comprehension, memorization, problem solving as well as other areas. If you are caught cheating you will be effectively removed from the process.
   

Agility Test: TBA

Oral Interview: Notification will be made to those applicants selected to move on to the next phase of the process. The notification will inform them of their oral interview date and time. You must present a valid driver’s license. Applicants should plan to arrive at the test site no later than 1/2 hour before their scheduled interview time. If you show up late for any reason to the oral interview, you will not be admitted and will not be able to continue in the hiring process. No excuses. The oral interview itself lasts about 30 minutes. You will sit before a board of 3 people, who will ask you questions and grade your response. Please dress as if you were going to a job interview for a corporation. It is helpful to give complete answers and use all of the allotted time for each question. More information on oral interviews can be found at http://www.eatstress.com/ and other websites such as this.
 

Background Investigations:

Candidates who have reached this phase of the hiring process may be required to get fingerprinted and go through a thorough background investigation. This investigation will cover your criminal and driving history. The Cincinnati Fire Department does not do credit history checks. If you have been convicted of a felony you will be removed from the process.

It is important that you have all pertinent information relating to your employment history and references. Background Investigations can take weeks to perform. It not necessary to call for updates. If your background check and fingerprints turn up clean you will be notified by mail if you have been selected to move on to the next phase of the process.

Conditional Offer of Employment: Once a candidate has successfully completed all phases of the hiring process, they may be given a conditional offer of employment contingent on passing your physical.
 

Medical Exam:

Those applicants selected to move on to the next phase of the hiring process will be notified by mail and informed of their scheduled time for these exams. This exam allows the medical history and current health of each applicant to be reviewed by a physician who will then recommend whether or not the applicant should continue. Tests included, but not limited to Body Fat, Hearing/Vision, Treadmill, Blood and Urine samples.

 

Job Interest Card:

Go to the city's Job Interest Card page in order to be notified when a position opens in one of your selected categories, place a check in the box next to each job category for which you would like to receive email notifications.

• Job Interest Card Page