Forest Fire Fighting and Prevention Supervisors: Salary, Job Description, How To Become One, and Quiz

Job description

Forest Fire Fighting and Prevention Supervisors supervise fire fighters who control and suppress fires in forests or vacant public land.

• Communicate fire details to superiors, subordinates, or interagency dispatch centers, using two-way radios.
• Evaluate size, location, and condition of forest fires.
• Serve as a working leader of an engine, hand, helicopter, or prescribed fire crew of three or more firefighters.
• Maintain fire suppression equipment in good condition, checking equipment periodically to ensure that it is ready for use.

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Salary

Forest Fire Fighting Supervisors with little to no experience tend to make between $42320 and $57940 while the more experienced ones can earn over $98970 per year.

One of the easiest ways to increase your salary as a Forest Fire Fighting and Prevention Supervisor is to move to a higher paying state like CA. Right now, the highest paying states for Forest Fire Fighting Supervisors are CA, NJ, NY, WA and NV.

However, a higher pay at CA doesn’t guarantee that you will make more because the living expenses at CA might be twice as high than where you are currently at now.

Three other factors that can increase your salary as a Forest Fire Fighting and Prevention Supervisor is the degree you hold, the industry you work in, and lastly the company you work for.

Requirements

We asked other Forest Fire Fighting Supervisors what degree they had when they got the job and most of them said they had an Associate’s Degree followed by a High School Diploma.

Other than that, we also asked them what did they major in and here are the most popular majors that came up.

Pros and Cons

Here are some of the pros and cons of being a Forest Fire Fighting and Prevention Supervisor.

What is the job like

82% of Forest Fire Fighting Supervisors said they were satisfied with their job and 85% said they feel like their job is making other people’s lives better.

Is this right for me

You can read more about these career personality types here.

People who are suitable for this job tends to like starting up and carrying out projects. They like leading people and making many decisions. Sometimes they require risk taking and often deal with business..

They also like work activities that include practical, hands-on problems and solutions. They like working with plants, animals, and real-world materials like wood, tools, and machinery.

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