How to answer the volunteer recruiter questions

This is your introduction. It is the first thing people read on your volunteer page, so give it the most time. Two or three short paragraphs, about 100 to 200 words, is about right.

• Who your volunteers are: neighbors with all kinds of jobs. Say so if no experience is needed.
• What a typical month looks like: whether volunteers respond from home or work when paged, staff the station on shifts, or both; about how many calls a month; and what kinds of calls.
• The team: training together, events, families.
• What you look for in a new member: usually showing up, being willing to learn and being a good teammate, more than experience. Saying so tells people they can do this.
• What volunteers get out of it: skills, certifications, a start toward a firefighting career, or years of serving their hometown.
• The next step: how to apply, or when to come by.

See this introduction on the sample volunteer page.

Avoid: only the department's history (that belongs in the department's description), and promises you can't keep.

What volunteers want to know: whether there is a place for them if they don't want to fight fires. Many people who would never apply as firefighters will gladly help in other ways.

• Every role you need: firefighter, emergency medical technician (EMT), driver, and support roles such as fundraising, public education, photography, social media, station and equipment upkeep, and food and water for crews on long calls.
• What each support role involves, and whether it needs training or a background check.
• A junior or cadet program for teens, if you have one.

Example We need firefighters, EMTs and drivers, and we need support volunteers just as much: people to help with fundraising, public education, photography, social media and equipment upkeep. Support volunteers don't go into burning buildings, and they are a big part of our team.

What volunteers want to know: whether they qualify, before they spend time applying. Put the requirements that rule people out first.

• Minimum age, and any education requirement, such as a high school diploma or GED.
• Driver's license, and whether a clean driving record is required.
• How close to the station people must live or work, or how quickly they must be able to get there.
• Checks before joining: background check, medical exam, physical ability test, drug test.
• References, if you ask for them, and how many.
• What is not required, such as experience or certifications you will train them for.
• Different requirements for support roles, if they are lighter.

Example You must be at least 18, have a valid driver's license, and live or work within 5 miles of the fire station. Before joining, you pass a background check and a medical exam. You don't need any experience. Support volunteers don't need the medical exam.

What volunteers want to know: whether the schedule fits their life, and how long until they can go on calls.

• When and where regular training meets: day, time and place.
• What new members complete before they respond to fires: how long the fire academy is, when it meets, and the certification they earn, such as Firefighter I.
• What new members can do while they train.
• Whether new members are on probation, for how long, and what it takes to finish it.
• Any coursework new members can do online, at their own pace.
• How many training hours you expect each month or year after that.
• Who pays for training and gear.

Example We train every Tuesday from 6 to 9 pm at the fire station. New firefighters complete our six-month fire academy on weekends, with some classes online, to earn Firefighter I certification before they respond to fires. Until then, they can help with support roles. New members are on probation for their first year. After the academy, we ask members to attend at least two Tuesday trainings a month. The department pays for all training and gear.

What volunteers want to know: whether they will pay for anything, and whether they will get anything back. Many people assume they have to buy their own gear or training.

• What the department provides, such as protective gear, uniforms, training and medical exams.
• Anything volunteers pay for themselves, such as boots or travel to training.
• Any pay per call, monthly stipend, retirement or length-of-service award, tuition help or other benefit. If there is none, say so.

Example It costs you nothing. The department provides your protective gear, training and medical exam. Volunteers are not paid, but we pay a small stipend for each call and drill you attend.

What volunteers want to know: whether they can just show up. Seeing the station and meeting the crew is often what turns interest into an application.

• Yes or no, and the best day and time, such as your training night.
• Where to go: which station, and which door.
• What happens when they get there, such as a tour of the station and the fire engines.
• That the crew may have to leave for a call, and what to do if that happens.

Example Yes! Come by the fire station on Tuesday evenings during training, 6 to 9 pm. If the bay doors are open, come say hello and we will show you around. If we get a call while you're here, we may have to leave quickly. Come back the next Tuesday, or call ahead at (555) 010-0100.

If drop-in visits don't work for your station, say so, and tell people what to do instead: "Please call first so we can make sure someone is there to show you around."

What volunteers want to know: when they can come see the station, meet your volunteers and ask questions, with no commitment. Leave this blank if you don't hold one; it only shows on your volunteer page when you answer it.

• How often: once or twice a year works for most departments; larger departments may hold them more often.
• The next date and time, if you know it, and where.
• What visitors will see and do: a station tour, the engines and equipment, a demonstration, members and their families to talk with.
• Whether applications are on hand, and when your next recruit academy starts.

Example Every spring and fall at the fire station, a few weeks before each fire academy starts. The next one is Saturday, April 10, from 10 am to 2 pm. Tour the station and the engines, meet our volunteers and their families, and pick up an application.

Ideas for running one: how to recruit more volunteers.

What volunteers want to know: whether it is worth applying today. Your answer sets what your listing says: "recruiting volunteers," or "not accepting volunteer applications right now."

• Yes, we are recruiting now if you are looking for volunteers this season, for example for your next fire academy.
• Yes, we accept applications all year if you take new members any time.
• Not right now if you are full or between academies. Say in your answers when you expect to recruit again, and send the form again when you start.

What volunteers want to know: where they would go for training and calls.

If volunteers are assigned to one fire station, name it, so people know whether it is close enough to reach quickly. If they join the department and are assigned to a station later, choose "The whole fire department." Your volunteer page says which, with a link to the station's page.

What volunteers want to know: what to do first, what comes next, and how long it takes before they start training. This becomes the "How do I volunteer?" section of your volunteer page.

• How to apply: your online application, a paper form at the station, or a call to the recruiter.
• Each step after that, in order: interview, references, background check, medical exam or physical ability test, and the fire academy.
• About how long it takes from application to first training, and when your next academy starts.

What volunteers want to know: where to find more. Paste the link to your own volunteer page or application, and your FireDepartment.net volunteer page links to it. Leave it blank if you don't have one; our free volunteer application can be your online application.

What volunteers want to know: who to talk to, and that someone will actually answer.

• Name and title the way people at the station know them, such as "Captain Maria Lopez, volunteer coordinator."
• Phone: a number someone answers, or calls back within a day or two. A station or department line works well. It is shown on your volunteer page.
• Email: one that is checked at least a few times a week. Volunteer applications and questions are sent there, and it is not shown on the site. A shared address, such as [email protected], keeps working when your recruiter changes.

Avoid: a personal cell phone number, unless the recruiter is happy to have it on a public page.

What volunteers want to know: what to do if nobody answers. A missed call can lose an interested person, so give them a second way in. Your answer shows on your volunteer page under "Who can I ask about volunteering?"

• A role, not just a name, so the answer stays right when people change: the duty officer, the station captain, any officer.
• A phone number and the hours someone answers it.
• A time someone is usually at the station.

Example Any of our officers can answer questions. Call the station at (555) 010-0100 on weekdays from 8 am to 5 pm, or stop by on a Tuesday evening and ask whoever is on duty.

Avoid: other members' personal phone numbers, unless they agreed.