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April-May 2004 |
Are You Studying for the Written?
Each fire department has its own method for promotional exams. There are written exams, oral interviews, and assessment centers. Many volunteer departments have elections. Different acronyms exist for policies, procedures and operating guidelines. There are SOP’s, SOG’s, POP’s, O and I’s. (Seattle, my department, uses POG’s, Policy and Operating Guides.) Testing procedures are just as unique.
Promotional exams can be a simple process or a complex, drawn-out endeavor. With public safety civil service commissions, there are challenges to questions and appeals before the final written score is derived. This happens before you can even proceed to the next portion of the exam process. In Seattle, from start to finish, the promotional exam process takes about 7 months. Then the final eligibility roster is posted and is good for two years. After that, we start the process all over again. (Public Safety Civil Service in Seattle conducts all testing from entry level to the highest supervisory positions for police and fire. This is one reason for the lengthy process.)
Why don’t we exhaust the promotional list and test when we need new candidates? Some cities, in fact, do just that. Seems fair; if you make the list, you will get a job. You just have to wait your turn. But if supervisors are not retiring, the wait could be years. Seattle, like most fire departments, has a time-in-grade prerequisite for all ranks before you’re eligible to take a promotional test to the next step. The trouble with exhaustive eligibility lists is that when you meet the time-in-grade requirement; you still may have to wait a very long before you can even test for advancement. Then you still have to wait your turn — and that could take even more years!
Having a two-year list provides the opportunity to test for promotion on a regular basis, thereby accommodating firefighters and officers who have met the time-in-grade requirement within those two years. That seems fair. The problem with a two-year list is that, if nobody retires, everyone dies on that list. Or, if there are only 10 promotions, candidate No. 11 dies at No. 1 on the list along with everyone else. And, if you don’t take and pass the next exam, you’re out! Once you were qualified to promote … now you’re not. Plus, you’re not guaranteed your previous placement. On one list, you may have ranked in the top 10. For a variety of reasons, the next time you may be No. 20. That’s not fair!
Every promotional process is problematic. In an effort to be fair to candidates, cities continue to improve testing procedures as flaws in the system are identified. This is good news for candidates, but it’s still important to develop a personal strategic study plan. Don’t be fooled. There will always be those firefighters who will simply take the exam cold turkey to “see what it’s like” and others may take it after a few weeks of casual study and do well. That’s never been the case with me. I’ve had to work hard at every test from entry level to battalion chief. It took the experience of 10 entry exams throughout the country before I finally landed at No. 40 out of 2,000 applicants for the City of Seattle. Someone finally told me there were study books for firefighter entry exams! This person also showed me how to study for entry exams. I am forever grateful. I never thought to ask about study resources … and no one ever told me. Who knows how many years I had wasted? But it paid off in one exam! So here are my personal study strategies.
Strategy 1: Become Educated on the Written
Talk to those who have taken previous exams. During the process, candidates are sworn to secrecy, but after the list is posted, they should be free to talk about its contents. Ask lots of questions and write the answers down for future reference. Make a file.
How many questions were on the test?
Was it fill-in, multiple-choice or both?
Were you tested on all the required reading?
Was there ample time to finish the exam?
Which subjects had the most questions?
Were there lots of numbers involved — form numbers, weights and measurements, formulas and calculations, dates and time frames?
Do you remember any actual questions from the test?
Was it hard or easy?
Are they testing for general knowledge or very specific technical knowledge? What are the areas of emphasis?
The answers to these questions will give you a good feel for what your department is testing for.
I remember having a one-on-one discussion with Chief Alan Brunacini. I was complaining about the inequities of the Seattle’s promotional process. I was hoping for some words of wisdom and advice. (I was really looking for some sympathy and validation from The Master for my self-pity.) Instead, I got the Brunacini chuckle that always comes before the “pie in the face” advice: “Listen, Kid, you have to learn how Seattle tests and study that way. It does no good to study like they do it in New York, Chicago, Phoenix or Los Angeles if Seattle doesn’t test like those cities. Learn what Seattle tests for and study for it. When I studied for chief [in Phoenix], there was a question on dock fires. Now why would we need to know about fighting dock fires when we live in the middle of the desert?! I don’t know! But if you want to be a chief in Phoenix, you need to know how to fight dock fires!”
Most fire department promotionals involve a written test and the syllabus can be quite extensive. They always include the department’s SOP’s (which are the size of the Encyclopedia Britannica) and are supplemented with the fire code, union contracts, books on supervision, IFSTA manuals and the like. Candidates who are competitive can study up to a year and even more for written tests. My last battalion-chief written exam had 17 different books for required reading! How can you possibly remember all that stuff?! You’re literally preparing for one humungous game of Trivial Pursuit.
Ideally, you only want to take three exams: lieutenant, captain and battalion chief. You’re not looking to make a career of taking tests because you want to get back to a normal life. Learning and mastering testing strategies also becomes an important component of preparation and that’s in addition to the required reading.
Strategy 2: Invest in Study Resources
Strategy books on taking tests are available for written and oral interviews. There are also reading retention and memory courses on the market. Invest in these resources. Start early. If you plan on promoting, you don’t want to split your study time between the required material and a “reading-for-memory” course. However, you will be investing hundreds of hours in reading. It would be wise to learn proven techniques and study habits to achieve your highest level of knowledge comprehension and retention.
Strategy 3: Buy Your Own Books
Nothing of value comes free. Investing in your promotion is no more different than paying for your college education. You’re willing to pay because it’s worth it. You need access to the books on your time schedule, not waiting your turn for the other guy to finish reading it at the firehouse. You need the ability to highlight and make notes in the margins. Whenever I come across a previous test question, I mark a red “TC” in the margin. Undoubtedly, important test questions tend to show up on every exam.
Published fire-service books and training manuals are easy to purchase on line. There’s a good chance your fire department SOP’s are on CD-rom. If not, borrow them to photocopy. Any other specific publication your city may use on the exam is usually available to be photocopied for your personal study use.
Strategy 4: Start with the Hard Stuff
The majority of the questions should come from your department’s SOP’s. Start here. Study this first. Department SOP’s get fined tuned throughout the years. Most changes are minor. The bulk of the material stays the same. In other words, you already know this stuff; you’ve been doing it for years. Next, work through the heavier reading (the most pages) and technical stuff like the fire code. It’s dry, but if you save it for last, as the exam date draws closer, it will be difficult to mentally retain the material. It’s a lot easier to go back and review technical material than try to comprehend it for the first time when the pressure is on because you’re running out of time.
From there, work your way through the thinner books or books that focus on a single topic, like ventilation, customer service, supervision etc.
Post a syllabus in your office as well as in your study notebook. Check off the books as you finish. Actually seeing a list with check marks gives you a sense of accomplishment as well as gauges your progress.
Strategy 5: Start a Year Before the Test
Studying always impacts your personal life, more so if you have a family with kids at home. Some people get up early to study, others stay up late. Starting a year before the exam is not far fetched. This allows you to pace yourself without impacting your family. You can break the material down into chapters requiring one to two hours of study per day. This is your family’s TV time. You won’t be missed. The key is staying disciplined and consistent. Just like losing weight, you watch your intake and exercise a little every day.
Strategy 6: Always Carry a Book With You
Another way to minimize the impact on your family is to always carry a book with you. This is why you need to purchase your own copies. If you’re working through an IFSTA manual, it’s easy to carry around. Smaller books like a union contract or the D.O.T. Emergency Response Guide are easier still. If your SOP is the size of the Gutenberg Bible, remove small portions and put them in a thin, one-inch binder.
Whenever you have idle time, study. If the family is off on an outing, have someone else drive. If it’s to the grocery store, you wait in the car and read. If you’re off to the mall, let them shop. You find a bench or a table at the food court and read. (Some stores have very comfortable chairs and sofas.) Take just enough material that you can realistically get through. If I’m at a doctor’s office or waiting for a haircut, I have a fire department book, not a magazine. Finally, there’s The Throne. Hey, that’s idle time! Don’t just sit; take something in with you.
Strategy 7: Study for Comprehension and Understanding
To achieve comprehension and understanding, there must be active learning. Simply reading is not active learning; it is passive. A system to outline and reference your information must be used. You can highlight, take notes, tape record or make flash cards; but you must have the ability to go back to selectively review and test yourself.
Study groups are not as effective as you might think. They tend to be too social and valuable time is wasted. It’s also been my experience that not everyone in the group has the same level of commitment to the process. Some come unprepared and are riding on the coattails of your hard work. They may be friends, but they’re also your competition.
Finally, remember this: Your written score will accurately reflect the time you put in for preparation. Your hard work will be rewarded.
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