Police, Fire, and Ambulance Dispatchers
Skills & Knowledge
Most Important Skills for Police, Fire, and Ambulance Dispatchers
- Listening—Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
- Speaking—Talking to others to convey information effectively.
- Being Aware of Others—Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
- Thinking Critically—Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
- Reading—Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
- Coordinating with Others—Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.
- Helping Others—Actively looking for ways to help people.
- Persuading Others—Persuading others to change their minds or behavior.
- Writing—Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.
- Making Decisions—Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.
Most Important Knowledge Areas for Police, Fire, and Ambulance Dispatchers
- Customer and Personal Service—Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
- Psychology—Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.
- Clerical—Knowledge of administrative and clerical procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and other office procedures and terminology.
- Public Safety and Security—Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.
- English Language—Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
- Telecommunications—Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.
- Computers and Electronics—Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
- Law and Government—Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
- Education and Training—Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
- Communications and Media—Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.
Interests
Different careers may be a good fit for your personality or interests. This career is:
- Conventional—Conventional occupations frequently involve following set procedures and routines. These occupations can include working with data and details more than with ideas. Usually there is a clear line of authority to follow.
- Realistic—Realistic occupations frequently involve work activities that include practical, hands-on problems and solutions. They often deal with plants, animals, and real-world materials like wood, tools, and machinery. Many of the occupations require working outside, and do not involve a lot of paperwork or working closely with others.
Learn more about your interests. Take the MnCareers Interest Assessment.
Describe Your Skills
People who have worked in this career typically perform the following tasks.
These statements can help a prospective employer understand what you can do, on a resume or during an interview.
- Communicating with people outside your organization.
- Using computers.
- Documenting or recording information.
- Collecting information from different sources.
- Communicating with supervisors, co-workers, or people that work under you.
- Working directly with the public.
- Making decisions or solving problems.
- Keeping up-to-date with new knowledge.
Careers that Use Similar Skills
The following careers use skills, knowledge, and abilities that are similar to those used for Police, Fire, and Ambulance Dispatchers.
View more careers in the Law, Public Safety, and Security cluster
View more careers in the Emergency and Fire Management Services pathway
This page includes information from the O*NET 24.2 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA.
Source: You can learn about our data sources in the About Us section.
