Lifeguards, Ski Patrol, and Other Recreational Protective Service Workers

Also Called:

Lifeguard,

Ocean Lifeguard,

Pool Attendant,

Ski Patroller

What they do: Monitor recreational areas, such as pools, beaches, or ski slopes, to provide assistance and protection to participants.

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Law, Public Safety, Corrections & Security

Career Cluster

What do they typically do on the job?

  • Patrol or monitor recreational areas, such as trails, slopes, or swimming areas, on foot, in vehicles, or from towers.
  • Rescue distressed persons, using rescue techniques and equipment.
  • Contact emergency medical personnel in case of serious injury.

Personality

People interested in this work like activities that include practical, hands-on problems and solutions.

Stress Tolerance

Self-Control

Cooperation

Cautiousness

Integrity

Dependability

Interests

Career interests describe the perspectives and interests of people who enjoy the type of work involved in this career.

Discover what your interests are by taking the Interest Profiler Quiz

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Realistic

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Social

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Conventional

Knowledge

People who want to pursue this career have knowledge in these areas.

Business

  • Customer service

Safety and Government

  • Public safety and security

Arts and Humanities

  • English language

Education and Training

  • Teaching and course design

Abilities

Whether you have received formal training or not, these types of abilities are helpful in this career.

Attention

  • Pay attention to something without being distracted

  • Do two or more things at the same time

Verbal

  • Communicate by speaking

  • Listen and understand what people say

Visual Understanding

  • See hidden patterns

  • Quickly compare groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things

Endurance

  • Exercise for a long time without getting out of breath

Skills

People who want to pursue this career have skills in these areas.

Basic Skills

  • Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements

  • Talking to others

Problem Solving

  • Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it

Work Values

Work values describe how your core beliefs align with those commonly needed for this career.

Relationships

Occupations that satisfy this work value allow employees to provide service to others and work with co-workers in a friendly non-competitive environment. Corresponding needs are Co-workers, Moral Values and Social Service.

Support

Occupations that satisfy this work value offer supportive management that stands behind employees. Corresponding needs are Company Policies, Supervision: Human Relations and Supervision: Technical.

Achievement

Occupations that satisfy this work value are results oriented and allow employees to use their strongest abilities, giving them a feeling of accomplishment. Corresponding needs are Ability Utilization and Achievement.

Does this sound like something you'd like to do?

1. Do some research
  • Identify how your interests, values, and strengths match this occupation
  • Talk to someone who works in this field or spend a day job shadowing
  • Use the colleges and training directory to explore programs related to this career
2. Plan your next move
  • Talk to your college and career counselor or school admissions staff
  • Visit Idaho Launch
  • Search for available Lifeguards, Ski Patrol, and Other Recreational Protective Service Workers jobs on Idaho Works

Data for NSI career cards comes from the following: Idaho Department of Labor, US Bureau of Labor Statistics, O*NET, MyNextMove, and Career OneStop