The 2014 entry-level Firefighter recruitment process continues as scheduled. The Human Resources (HR) Department administered an application period in August and a written exam in September. Eighty-nine of the 91 candidates who sat for the written exam successfully achieved the minimum passing score and qualified to participate in on-site interviews on November 13. HR staff coordinated the event, in which six different panels of City and community representatives completed a total of 87 structured interviews in one day.
Each four-person interview panel consisted of two members of the Fire Department, one City representative, and one community agency representative. City representatives included Board of Fire and Police Commissioners and staff from the Fire, Public Works, and Police Departments and METCAD. Members of the Don Moyer Boys and Girls Club, American Red Cross, Champaign Park District, Illinois Fire Service Institute, Arrow Ambulance and Champaign County Emergency Management Agency all volunteered their time to serve as interviewers.
Human Resources and Fire Department staff greatly appreciate the time and effort that all interviewers devoted to the process. Diverse panels are integral to incorporating different perspectives and insight into the recruitment process as well as being a great opportunity for the Fire Department to engage with community members and other City staff.
Scores from the written exam and oral interviews will be combined to establish an initial rank-order eligibility list. Candidates will then be able to apply for preference points based on military service, experience/fire certification, education, and/or residency. A final eligibility list will then be reviewed for approval by the Board of Police and Fire Commissioners in February 2015. Firefighters may be selected from this list as vacancies occur during the next two years.