A new program at Confederation College will give wannabe firefighters a leg-up in the application process to join the ranks of Thunder Bay firefighters.
The college announced the addition of a pre-service firefighter education and training program, 24 students will begin classes this September. The curriculum for the three-semester course was developed by the Ontario Association of Fire Chiefs and the Ontario Fire Marshall’s office; it also has the support of the Thunder Bay Fire and Rescue Service.
Fire chief John Hay said hopefully the recruits that go through the college’s program will be better candidates for Thunder Bay Fire and Rescue.
“Those that graduate, they’ll have a good understanding of what it takes to be a firefighter,” he said. “They’ll be well prepared to enter the competition and probably better off than most.”
He added the college graduates will be able to communicate better in an interview and they will offer credit for the fact they took the program.
Thunder Bay Fire and Rescue has been in the middle of a significant hiring process for the last three years, turning more than 40 of their complement, said Hay.
Confederation College president Pat Lang said their research showed the same demographic trends that are affecting the rest of society and other professions will also affect the firefighter profession; as baby boomers retire, job opportunities will be open for these graduates.
“We’ve been working closely with all the local fire departments to ensure we have the right number of students enrolled in the program and that there will be job opportunities at the end of this program all across Ontario for these students,” said Lang.
One advantage the program has unique to other cities is the Thunder Bay and Region Protective and Emergency Services Training Centre.
“This is really the only program in Ontario that we know of where the students will actually be training in the local training facility,” Lang said. “You can only imagine the millions of dollars if the college had tried to recreate even a small portion of this.”
The college is expecting anywhere from 100 to 200 applicants for the 24 seats in the program.
