The Ultimate Paramedic Resume

[Jwade]

Like I said before, I have been told buisness degrees are the way to go. My question is why? I mean aside from running your own ambulance company, how does a business degree enhance your NREMT-p? As much as I like business, I do not think that 2 more years of business school will make me totally happy. Its a shame I have to wait to take my medic course, but I want to make the best of it.

Will a business degree make you a better PARAMEDIC? NO, HOWEVER, and I am going on the assumption that you are probably young, and there is a saying, " You dont know, what you dont know". This applies here....

While you are asking what will enhance your NREMT-P, ONE never knows what the future will hold, therefore, I think it is imperative you finish your business degree while waiting for the medic course....Trust me, after you have been in this business 20 years, you will more than likely want to do something else, and going back to school in your mid thirties or forties is not exactly fun.....( Ask me how I know).....

Knock it out now!

Also, when you go to apply to Flight Programs, having a 4yr degree will set you above MOST everyone else....A 4 year degree on a RESUME is NEVER a bad thing or a waste of time...The ONLY people who say this are people who do not have one!

Respectfully,

JW

[croaker260]

Well, short term clinical expertise, it wont. Long term career growth, it will. Business degrees will help you in many areas, not just upper management. It helps you with statistical analysis of resarch, simple interaction with buisness owners in the poublic arean, etc....So will education degrees, etc.

But in the short term, for that first gig, see my posts above.

[Bamx]

I was looking at something today that was called an Emergency Management Degree. It seems somewhat new, as not many of the schools in my area offer it. It sounds like something I would be much more interested in rather then a Business Degree. Anyone ever hear of this degree?

http://www.uaf.edu/som/programs/bem/

Emergency Management

There is an ever-increasing demand for fire department and emergency services administrators educated in fire science, emergency medical services, rescue practices, hazardous materials, terrorism threats and business management practices. The business administration department offers students the opportunity to combine technical expertise derived from the associate of applied science degree in emergency services with a curriculum in business management to become highly competitive candidates for job openings and promotion to chief officer or administrator positions within fire departments and other related fields of emergency services.

Fire chiefs and emergency services administrators of the future will need a combination of knowledge and experience covering fire science, EMS, government and politics, accounting, business practices, personnel management, employment law, organizational theory and behavior, training and management development, organizational communications, technical writing, public policy, and leadership and civic engagement offered in the emergency management degree curriculum.

Major — B.E.M. Degree

1. Complete the general university requirements. (As part of the core curriculum requirements, complete MATH F107X* or MATH F161X* and STAT F200X.*)
2. Complete the B.E.M. degree requirements *.
3. Complete 33 credits of major requirements from the UAF emergency services A.A.S. degree or any regionally accredited institution fire science A.A.S. degree with a cumulative GPA of 2.25 or higher.
4. Complete the following*:
   PS F101—Introduction to American Government/ Politics—3 credits
   ACCT F261—Accounting Concepts/ Uses —3 credits
   ECON F200—Principles of Economics—4 credits
   BA F151—Introduction to Business —3 credits
   BA F307—Personnel Management —3 credits
   BA F317W—Employment Law —3 credits
   BA F390—Organizational Theory and Behavior —3 credits
   BA F452W—Internship in Emergency Management —3 credits
   BA F457—Training and Management Development —3 credits
   COMM F335O—Organizational Communications—3 credits
   ENGL F314 W, O/2—Technical Writing —3 credits
   PS F321—International Politics —3 credits
   PS F403W—Public Policy —3 credits
5. Complete 15 credits in the Leadership and Civic Engagement minor as follows:
   1. Complete the following:
      NORS F205—Leadership, Citizenship and Choice—3 credits
      NORS F486—Senior Seminar/ Leadership and Civic Engagement—3 credits
   2. Complete 9 credits from the following. At least one course must be a PS elective and one course must be a HIST elective:
      PS F202—Democracy and Global Society—3 credits
      PS F263—Alaska Native Politics—3 credits
      PS F301—American Presidency—3 credits
      PS F315—American Political Thought—3 credits
      PS F462—Alaska Government and Politics—3 credits
      HIST F131—History of the U.S.—3 credits
      HIST F132—History of the U.S.—3 credits
      HIST F361—Early American History—3 credits
      HIST F364—History of the U.S. 1945- Present—3 credits
      RD F300W—Rural Development in a Global Perspective—3 credits
      RD F325—Community Development Strategies—3 credits

Edited November 28, 2009 by Bamx

[EMS49393]

Will a business degree make you a better PARAMEDIC? NO, HOWEVER, and I am going on the assumption that you are probably young, and there is a saying, " You dont know, what you dont know". This applies here....

While you are asking what will enhance your NREMT-P, ONE never knows what the future will hold, therefore, I think it is imperative you finish your business degree while waiting for the medic course....Trust me, after you have been in this business 20 years, you will more than likely want to do something else, and going back to school in your mid thirties or forties is not exactly fun.....( Ask me how I know).....

Knock it out now!

Also, when you go to apply to Flight Programs, having a 4yr degree will set you above MOST everyone else....A 4 year degree on a RESUME is NEVER a bad thing or a waste of time...The ONLY people who say this are people who do not have one!

Respectfully,

JW

I'm in my mid-thirties and back in school working on another degree, this time in history. I actually like school a lot more this time around. I'm older, it means more, and my drive to graduate with honors is much greater. Although I didn't do poorly when I went to college the first time in my teens, I didn't do as well as I could have because I wasn't mature enough to appreciate my classes. Unfortunately most young people think that a class that does not directly pertain to their course of study is useless, which is usually far from the case. I hear paramedic students talk about how they don't want to get a degree because they don't want to have to take any English, mathematics, or regular college level A&P. These are the same students that can't form a sentence in a narrative or calculate a drug dosage. Nearly everything in education may eventually come back to haunt you at a later date.

You can get a degree in any subject your heart desires. I'd suggest that you research different employment requirements before you settle on a degree. You might find there isn't a snowballs chance in hell you'll ever use an Emergency Management degree. Pull up careerbuilder or monster, search jobs that may interest you down the road and read the requirements and preferred abilities for those jobs. They'll give you a much more accurate idea of what degree will actually land you a job.

These older guys on here are correct about one thing... a business degree is a highly desirable commodity. It's specialized enough to get a good job, and generic enough to qualify for more obscure but interesting jobs. It's one of those not-so-interesting but highly useful degrees.

[Kiwiology]

I would have to say that you need to focus on things outside of the clinical realm and get a good dose of experience out there in the big wide world.

My experience has been that the ambulance service (here at least) looks at you as a person and not what you can do medically. While that is important it can be taught. You can't teach maturity, life skills and how to get on with people.

[tniuqs]

Ok call me crazy to respond to the OP query:

Would you not have to be the Ultimate Paramedic to Have the Ultimate Paramedic Resume ?

Following that concept a degree in Business may be the objective if one wishes to become a manager ok fine, but in patient care would not a degree in Sciences be the goal, yah know like paramedicine ?

Seriously: There are some on this website that would wish to climb the corporate ladder and the other's that are quite content to be just damn good Paramedics FIRST.

cheers and good luck with that.

Edited November 29, 2009 by tniuqs

[Siffaliss]

Would you not have to be the Ultimate Paramedic to Have the Ultimate Paramedic Resume ?

Yeah, doesn't sound like he really has any experience though ...

Following that concept a degree in Business may be the objective if one wishes to become a manager ok fine, but in patient care would not a degree in Sciences be the goal, yah know like paramedicine ?

Gee, I wonder ...

Seriously: There are some on this website that would wish to climb the corporate ladder and the other's that are quite content to be just damn good Paramedics FIRST.

Yes there are.

You can't teach maturity, life skills and how to get on with people.

Well said.

I want to be able to put my application in anywhere throughout the nation, and land the position I want, due to my stellar resume and experience.

So you might have been in for maybe a year ... Stellar resume and experience in EMS? How cocky, coming from a newb ...

At the moment I am an NREMT B with a general studies associates degree. Most of the Medic courses offered around me require you to be a basic for at least 2 years. Since I will have some time to kill before I can apply for Medic course, I was wondering what the best 4 year degree is to go hand and hand with an NREMT. I have heard a lot about degrees in Management being very helpful due to the fact that EMS and Fire are extremely hectic worlds always looking for some organization.

Maybe get a decent level of experience in the field, so you're not that guy who nobody respects, because he doesn't know what he's talking about due to lack of experience?

I think you are misunderstanding my original post. Actually by what you posted it looks like you did not even read the original post. I know the interview and your social skills land you a job. I just want to know what I can do to make my resume get me places.

What social skills? You've succeeded in making yourself look like an arrogant ass on a simple forum. People you might work for or with one day could be reading these posts ...

Edited November 29, 2009 by Siffaliss

[Dustdevil]

Looks like a full variety of options has been covered already, all with their benefits and drawbacks. But you are the only one who knows why you are interested in EMS to begin with. And that is what will guide your future career decisions. Do you have the slightest interest in management? If patient care and lights and sirens were no longer part of the job, would you even want to be part of it anymore? Let's face it, a lot of us simply aren't cut out to be empty suit paper pushers, and have no interest in an MBA or Public Administration course of study.

If the practice of medicine is your primary interest, then I would agree that a BSN is the way to go. It is the one option that will absolutely make you a much, much better medic, as well as immediately appeal to a potential employer. After all, that is the question you asked. Most employers aren't going to give a rat's arse about your MBA, and a great many will even be turned off by it. It might look good after a decade of experience, but until then, it's not an asset to you at all. And even then, that's only if you have an interest in management. Not to mention that there simply are not a lot of EMS management jobs out there to be had.

There is an EM degree programme at a university local to me. I have known several of their students and grads, and few of them are finding suitable employment. The market simply isn't that broad. There are some great positions to be had in EM, mostly in the public sector, but they just are not plentiful.

The bottom line is, before you can plan for your future, you first have to visualise it.

Finally, a little situational awareness would do you well here. This group is committed to helping each other out, and does a great job of it. To lash out with smartass remarks to those people, when they were trying to help you, indicates that you have a lot more to work on than just your resume.

Good luck!

[rock_shoes]

Well you asked for it.

Step number one. Attend either this program or one like it.

Primary Care Paramedic/Honours BSC

Step number two. Attend one of the 6 year Canadian Medical Association accredited Advanced Care Paramedic programs available. Most likely in Ontario as that's where your Primary Care Paramedic certification will come from.

Step number three. Attend the following Critical Care Paramedic program through ORNGE as it is the only CCP program with current six year CMA accreditation.

Critical Care Paramedic

Then, if you really want to go for the gold, complete an accredited RRT program.

Ed

[Bamx]

Looks like a full variety of options has been covered already, all with their benefits and drawbacks. But you are the only one who knows why you are interested in EMS to begin with. And that is what will guide your future career decisions. Do you have the slightest interest in management? If patient care and lights and sirens were no longer part of the job, would you even want to be part of it anymore? Let's face it, a lot of us simply aren't cut out to be empty suit paper pushers, and have no interest in an MBA or Public Administration course of study.

If the practice of medicine is your primary interest, then I would agree that a BSN is the way to go. It is the one option that will absolutely make you a much, much better medic, as well as immediately appeal to a potential employer. After all, that is the question you asked. Most employers aren't going to give a rat's arse about your MBA, and a great many will even be turned off by it. It might look good after a decade of experience, but until then, it's not an asset to you at all. And even then, that's only if you have an interest in management. Not to mention that there simply are not a lot of EMS management jobs out there to be had.

There is an EM degree programme at a university local to me. I have known several of their students and grads, and few of them are finding suitable employment. The market simply isn't that broad. There are some great positions to be had in EM, mostly in the public sector, but they just are not plentiful.

The bottom line is, before you can plan for your future, you first have to visualise it.

Finally, a little situational awareness would do you well here. This group is committed to helping each other out, and does a great job of it. To lash out with smartass remarks to those people, when they were trying to help you, indicates that you have a lot more to work on than just your resume.

Good luck!

My only lash out was to someone who posted that i should find templates for a resume builder online, which is clearly evident that they did not read the original post.

As far as Paramedic Experience, that is not what this thread is about. I plan on busting my ass in medic school and being the best medic that I can be. The post is about a medic resume and what 4 year degree would look best. Some people on here seem to think otherwise.