Fire Dispatcher

City of San Diego; San Diego (CA); On-site; USD 65,000 - 90,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

EMD certification bonus

Job summary

City of San Diego is seeking Fire Dispatcher personnel to operate a CAD system, assess requests for fire and EMS, and dispatch units as needed.

Position requires passing a computer-based performance test, working 12-hour shifts (44/36 rotation), and eligibility to work in the United States. Candidates must meet age, citizenship, education, and experience requirements, with multilingual skills considered highly desirable.

Qualifications

• Data entry and information processing skills essential for CAD operation.
• Ability to rapidly read and comprehend incoming information from callers.
• Ability to prioritize and categorize incidents under pressure.
• Strong keyboarding and cross-referencing skills for dispatch.
• Familiarity with map reading and spacial awareness is helpful.

Responsibilities

• Operate a Computer-Aided Dispatch (CAD) system to handle 911 and non-emergency calls.
• Determine incident priority and dispatch fire/EMS units accordingly.
• Answer routine inquiries and route calls to appropriate departments or agencies.
• Complete required documentation and participate in ongoing training.

Skills

Data entry

Data entry (audio)

Call summarization

Cross referencing

Cross referencing (audio)

Character comparison

Memory recall

Memory recall (audio)

Prioritization

Map reading

Spelling

Sentence clarity

Reading comprehension

Education

Graduation from high school

Passage of the General Education Development (G.E.D.) test

Passage of the California High School Proficiency Examination (C.H.S.P.E.)

Two-year, four-year, or advanced degree from college/university

Tools

NAEMD certification process

Job description

See NOTE(S) below for additional compensation opportunities.

YOU WILL BE REQUIRED TO PASS A COMPUTER-BASED PERFORMANCE TEST TO BE CONSIDERED FOR FIRE DISPATCHER POSITIONS.

Fire Dispatcher positions receive and evaluate requests for fire and emergency medical service; dispatch appropriate fire and/or paramedic units to the incident; and perform other duties as assigned.

Fire-Rescue Dispatchers work on a Computer-Aided Dispatch (CAD) system and are the primary answering point for all 911, 10-digit emergency, and non-emergency phone calls from within the City of San Diego (Fire-Rescue Department has dispatch contracts with Chula Vista, Coronado, Imperial Beach, National City, and Poway); elicit essential incident information from callers; determine the nature and extent of the request, the priority of the problem and the need for dispatching police, fire or medical field units; enter appropriate information by typing on a computer keyboard into a dispatch format; answer routine inquiries and refer calls not requiring dispatch to the appropriate department or agency.

NOTES

• Employees in job classifications represented by Municipal Employees Association (MEA) are scheduled to receive the following general wage increases:
  • 3.5% effective 7/1/27
  • 2% effective 7/1/28
  • 2% effective 1/1/29
• Eligible benefitted employees originally hired on or after July 10, 2021, will be automatically enrolled in the San Diego City Employees Retirement System (SDCERS).
• Fire Dispatcher employees work 12-hour shifts (44/36 rotation schedule).
• Fire Dispatcher employees may be required to work overtime during training, if needed, on cleared positions.
• Fire Dispatcher employees may be required to work during all City holidays.
• Fire Dispatcher employees are eligible for 17.5% additional pay after successfully completing the paid mandatory Emergency Medical Dispatcher (EMD) certification course.
• Fire Dispatcher employeesare subject to mandated overtime beyond their scheduled shift with short notice to maintain staffing levels.
• The communication center in the Fire-Rescue Department operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week, with day, evening, and night shifts. Dispatcher I employees will be rotated to different shifts on a periodic basis.

You must meet the following requirements on the date you apply, unless otherwise indicated.

AGE

You must be 18 years of age or older.

CITIZENSHIP

You must be a United States citizen or have the current legal right to work in the United States.

EDUCATION

You must meet ONE of the following options:

1. Graduation from high school.
2. Passage of the General Education Development (G.E.D.) test.
3. Passage of the California High School Proficiency Examination (C.H.S.P.E.).
4. Possession of a two-year, four-year, or advanced degree from a college or university.

EXPERIENCE

You must meet ONE of the following options:

1. One year of full-time experience receiving and dispatching requests for fire and emergency medical services to fire and paramedic units by voice radio or telephone.
2. One year of experience as a Dispatcher performing emergency dispatch for a medical transport company or department.

NOTES

• Fire Dispatcher employees must obtain and maintain National Academy of Emergency Medical Dispatch (NAEMD) certification within six months from date of hire.
• City of San Diego employees using Out-of-Class Assignment (OCA) experience to qualify must submit written documentation signed by their appointing authority or payroll specialist, detailing the work performed, dates, and total number of qualifying OCA hours. OCA experience without the required documentation will NOT be considered.

HIGHLY DESIRABLE

• The ability to communicate and understand any of the following languages: Spanish, Korean, Arabic, Farsi, Somali, Chinese, Indochinese, or Tagalog.

The screening process will consist of the following components

1. APPLICATION REVIEW: Please ensure all information is complete and accurate as the responses you provide on the supplemental questions will be reviewed using an automated evaluation system. If you are successful in this initial screening process, your application will be reviewed for applicable education, experience, and/or training to ensure all minimum requirements have been met.

2. PERFORMANCE TEST: The performance test is a computer-based work simulation test that measures the general aptitudes needed to be a Fire Dispatcher. No prior dispatch experience is necessary to pass the test. The test includes the following fourteen (14) test modules and ten (10) decision-making scenario prompts that activate during the administration of the test modules. The prompts measure the ability to make decisions quickly and accurately in a multi-task environment and to correctly signal the response using a computer:

• DATA ENTRY: The ability to read written data and accurately enter that data using a keyboard.
• DATA ENTRY (AUDIO): The ability to hear audible data and accurately enter that data using a keyboard.
• CALL SUMMARIZATION 1: The ability to hear, comprehend, and summarize audible information.
• CALL SUMMARIZATION 2: The ability to hear and comprehend audible information while accurately entering that information using a keyboard, and to subsequently use that information.
• CROSS REFERENCING: The ability to locate information, requested in writing, on a written list and to correctly/accurately respond using a keyboard.
• CROSS REFERENCING (AUDIO): The ability to locate information, requested audibly, on a written list and to correctly/accurately respond using a keyboard.
• CHARACTER COMPARISON: The ability to compare and contrast written data.
• MEMORY RECALL: The ability to learn and later recognize associated information.
• MEMORY RECALL – NUMERIC (AUDIO): The ability to hear data (number sequences), memorize it, and then use a keyboard to accurately enter the data.
• PRIORITIZATION: The ability to evaluate and analyze information in order to prioritize or categorize incidents.
• MAP READING: The ability to use maps for determining routes and locations.
• SPELLING: The ability to correctly spell words according to the context in which they are being used (i.e., homonyms).
• SENTENCE CLARITY: The ability to select the written passage that is the most clearly written.
• READING COMPREHENSION: The ability to read and comprehend written passages.

NOTE

• For additional information regarding the performance test review:

  https://www.sandiego.gov/sites/default/files/criticall_candidate_test_preparation_guide_0.pdf

Performance Test Scheduling

Approved applicants will be notified regarding the opportunity to schedule themselves for the performance test.

Performance Test Scoring

This is a pass/fail test. The test module scores are weighted to account for correct responses to the decision‑making scenario prompts. Applicants must pass ALL 14 test modules to successfully complete the performance test and be placed on the eligible list. Performance test weight: 100%.

Reexamination Eligibility

If you fail the performance test, you may reapply a month (30 days) after your most recent test date.

SUPPLEMENTAL JOB INFORMATION

A career as a Dispatcher offers many satisfying and rewarding opportunities to help others and make a sufficient contribution to public safety. This challenging, fast-paced work requires quick thinking and problem solving abilities, and excellent public relations skills. The job, however, also has some demands that you may find less appealing. The factors listed below describe aspects of the job of which you may not be aware. It is important that you consider these conditions before you accept employment in this job classification. This information is not provided to discourage you from seeking employment in this capacity; it is presented only to help you decide if this would be a good job choice for you.

• There will be times that you will be unable to leave your work station for long periods during your shift. Therefore, you must be able to work in a confined area for your entire shift. You may be required to wear a headset.
• You may be required to change your work shift (includes weekends, nights and holidays) and/or cancel days off or holiday plans on short notice. There may be times you will be mandated to work overtime.
• You must respond courteously, calmly, and effectively to telephone calls when someone is rude, drunk, irrational, difficult to understand, confused, using obscene language, and/or screaming at