Police, Fire, and Ambulance Dispatchers

Also Called:

Communications Officer,

Communications Operator,

Public Safety Dispatcher,

Telecommunicator

What they do: Operate radio, telephone, or computer equipment at emergency response centers. Receive reports from the public of crimes, disturbances, fires, and medical or police emergencies. Relay information to law enforcement and emergency response personnel. May maintain contact with caller until responders arrive.

Public Service & Safety icon

Public Service & Safety

Career Cluster

What do they typically do on the job?

  • Provide emergency medical instructions to callers.
  • Question callers to determine their locations and the nature of their problems to determine type of response needed.
  • Determine response requirements and relative priorities of situations, and dispatch units in accordance with established procedures.

Personality

People interested in this work like activities that include data, detail, and regular routines.

Stress Tolerance

Self-Control

Cooperation

Cautiousness

Integrity

Attention to Detail

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

See Related Jobs

Conventional

See Related Jobs

Realistic

See Related Jobs

Social

Abilities

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

Verbal

  • Communicate by speaking

  • Listen and understand what people say

Attention

  • Pay attention to something without being distracted

  • Do two or more things at the same time

Ideas and Logic

  • Notice when problems happen

  • Order or arrange things

Visual Understanding

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

Skills

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

Basic Skills

  • Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions

  • Talking to others

Social

  • Understanding people's reactions

  • Changing what is done based on other people's actions

Problem Solving

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

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 Police, Fire, and Ambulance Dispatchers 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