Products and Services - Fire Department - Entry-level Written Test
What is Selection Solutions?
Selection Solutions is an award-winning entry-level test designed specifically for the Fire Service. It has been nationally validated in fire departments across the country, and provides the most powerful selection process available. With Selection Solutions, you receive all the benefits of a job analysis and validation study, while also receiving a legally defensible written test. All for one low price!
Selection Solutions is designed to provide you with the maximum value for a minimal cost. With this exam your department will receive:
A nationally validated test that was developed based on a thorough job analysis that included fire departments from across the county. CWH’s award-winning validation study demonstrated that there is a high correlation between Selection Solution test scores and successful firefighter performance.
Selection Solutions is the only entry-level written test that has ever been endorsed by the International Association of Fire Chiefs (IAFC).
A test that that was recommended by the Department of Justice in a landmark 2001 lawsuit due to its high validity and low adverse impact.
A test that was the winner of the 1999 Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology Award for Practical Applications in the Workplace.
A test that was created using state-of-the-art test development techniques designed to reduce adverse impact against protected groups. As a result, Selection Solutions demonstrates the lowest intrinsic bias for protected classes of any comparable product and will help you substantially diversify your department.
Access to CWH consulting services (such as adverse impact analyses and advice on pass points). The CWH consulting team is made up of dedicated professionals who are committed to providing our clients with quality, state-of-the-art personnel assessment services.
By using Selection Solutions, your department will:
Save Money
Hire the Most Qualified Candidates
Improve Performance and Department Morale
Diversify Your Department and Reduce Adverse Impact
Selection Solutions Firefighter Test: Portrait of a Well-Rounded Individual
What is being measured in the test?
Emotional Skills
Emotional skills refer to a broad set of skills that might be thought of as Emotional Intelligence. These skills include Optimism, Personal Influence, Self Control and Impulse Control, Respect for Authority, and Ethics. These are skills and values that are generated within a person and are demonstrated in the person’s integrity, dependability, initiative, and self confidence.
Interpersonal Skills
Interpersonal skills have been ignored by traditional selection tests, yet the ability to deal with others is one of the most important skills a firefighter can have. Interpersonal skills refer to the various abilities required to deal effectively and positively with others. These skills include Compassion and Empathy, Teamwork, Conflict Resolution, Oral Communication, Service Orientation, and Flexibility. This test component has a strong multicultural basis and measures an applicant’s ability to work cooperatively and effectively with diverse groups of people, within the department in which they work, and with members of the public.
Practical Skills
Practical skills refer to the ability to handle everyday problems and situations, to understand how to work with people, how to accomplish goals, and how to use good judgment and common sense in everyday work and life. Firefighters must be able to think clearly, quickly, and logically in complicated situations. They must be able to identify, analyze, and solve problems. Part of solving complicated problems is the ability to recognize several different ways of solving a problem and choosing the most effective solution in each particular situation. This test component includes Problem Solving and Judgment.
Basic Education Skills
This component of the test includes more traditional measures of ability related to the job, such as reading, writing, and mathematical abilities. Basic Education abilities measure a person’s acquired knowledge (such as ability to do basic mathematics), ability to succeed in job training, and ability to comprehend, learn, and retain information necessary for doing the job.
The scores in the different components are combined into a Total Score to provide a final score and ranking for each applicant.
Emotional Skills
Emotional skills refer to a broad set of skills that might be thought of as Emotional Intelligence. These skills include Optimism, Personal Influence, Self Control and Impulse Control, Respect for Authority, and Ethics. These are skills and values that are generated within a person and are demonstrated in the person’s integrity, dependability, initiative, and self confidence.
Interpersonal Skills
Interpersonal skills have been ignored by traditional selection tests, yet the ability to deal with others is one of the most important skills a firefighter can have. Interpersonal skills refer to the various abilities required to deal effectively and positively with others. These skills include Compassion and Empathy, Teamwork, Conflict Resolution, Oral Communication, Service Orientation, and Flexibility. This test component has a strong multicultural basis and measures an applicant’s ability to work cooperatively and effectively with diverse groups of people, within the department in which they work, and with members of the public.
Practical Skills
Practical skills refer to the ability to handle everyday problems and situations, to understand how to work with people, how to accomplish goals, and how to use good judgment and common sense in everyday work and life. Firefighters must be able to think clearly, quickly, and logically in complicated situations. They must be able to identify, analyze, and solve problems. Part of solving complicated problems is the ability to recognize several different ways of solving a problem and choosing the most effective solution in each particular situation. This test component includes Problem Solving and Judgment.
Basic Education Skills
This component of the test includes more traditional measures of ability related to the job, such as reading, writing, and mathematical abilities. Basic Education abilities measure a person’s acquired knowledge (such as ability to do basic mathematics), ability to succeed in job training, and ability to comprehend, learn, and retain information necessary for doing the job.
The scores in the different components are combined into a Total Score to provide a final score and ranking for each applicant.
Emotional Skills
Emotional skills refer to a firefighter’s ability to understand and motivate him or herself. These are referred to as “intrapersonal” skills. There are several facets of understanding oneself. The first is one’s ability to recognize one’s own emotions, without dwelling on them. Firefighters must deal with emotionally difficult situations that can evoke strong emotions in themselves. The best firefighters will be aware of and acknowledge these emotions, rather than trying to block out and ignore how they feel. At the same time, becoming self-absorbed and dwelling on these emotions will render a firefighter useless to the team and the department.
After recognizing his or her own emotions, a firefighter must have the ability to regulate those emotions. There are several acceptable ways of dealing with strong emotions. However, a person who is unable to effectively regulate his or her emotions will hinder the effectiveness of the organization at the least, and may even be dangerous in more severe cases. The most effective firefighters will be able to identify and acknowledge their feelings, deal with those feelings, and move on.
Another part of self awareness is the ability to motivate oneself. Natural talent plays only a small part in a person’s success. Instead, those people who are motivated to work hard, study, and practice are most likely to succeed on the job.
The test presents several situations which measure the ability to recognize feelings in oneself, the ability to deal effectively with various emotions, and a person’s level of self motivation:
1. Stressful situations which can create stress, such as a screaming child, a rude person, or being late. In dealing with people who are upset, a common reaction is to also become upset. A firefighter must recognize when he or she is becoming upset, regulate that emotion, and remain professional.
2. Disappointing situations, such as missing out on a promotion, or failing a test. A firefighter should have an optimistic attitude, and a belief that the best outcome will occur.
3. Situations that present a challenge, such as getting a bad grade on a paper. A good firefighter must believe that his or her actions will affect the outcome of events. A firefighter cannot believe that the outcome of events is out of his or her control and still be effective.
4. Situations requiring the person to act responsibly in uncomfortable circumstances, such as owning up to a personal mistake. A good firefighter is driven by strong values and ethics, along with a willingness to act upon those values and ethics. The public must be able to trust its public servants to be honest, ethical and responsible.
After recognizing his or her own emotions, a firefighter must have the ability to regulate those emotions. There are several acceptable ways of dealing with strong emotions. However, a person who is unable to effectively regulate his or her emotions will hinder the effectiveness of the organization at the least, and may even be dangerous in more severe cases. The most effective firefighters will be able to identify and acknowledge their feelings, deal with those feelings, and move on.
Another part of self awareness is the ability to motivate oneself. Natural talent plays only a small part in a person’s success. Instead, those people who are motivated to work hard, study, and practice are most likely to succeed on the job.
The test presents several situations which measure the ability to recognize feelings in oneself, the ability to deal effectively with various emotions, and a person’s level of self motivation:
1. Stressful situations which can create stress, such as a screaming child, a rude person, or being late. In dealing with people who are upset, a common reaction is to also become upset. A firefighter must recognize when he or she is becoming upset, regulate that emotion, and remain professional.
2. Disappointing situations, such as missing out on a promotion, or failing a test. A firefighter should have an optimistic attitude, and a belief that the best outcome will occur.
3. Situations that present a challenge, such as getting a bad grade on a paper. A good firefighter must believe that his or her actions will affect the outcome of events. A firefighter cannot believe that the outcome of events is out of his or her control and still be effective.
4. Situations requiring the person to act responsibly in uncomfortable circumstances, such as owning up to a personal mistake. A good firefighter is driven by strong values and ethics, along with a willingness to act upon those values and ethics. The public must be able to trust its public servants to be honest, ethical and responsible.
Interpersonal Skills
Interpersonal skills refer to the ability to understand others and to respond appropriately. These skills go hand-in-hand with self awareness skills. In fact, people who are able to recognize and regulate their own emotions tend to also be better able to recognize and accurately read emotions in others. However, recognizing emotions in others is only a part of good interpersonal skills. Firefighters must also be able to deal effectively with others in several types of situations. For example, a frightened child would need to be handled differently than an angry co-worker. Interpersonal skills also include respect and tolerance of differences between people and an ability to work cooperatively with people of different cultures.
One of the most important pieces of good interpersonal skills is a person’s ability to be flexible in thoughts and actions. This includes being willing to change and modify one’s own communication style. It also includes a demonstrated willingness to be patient, non-judgmental, and accepting of other people. A firefighter with good interpersonal skills will recognize and respect different styles and approaches to dealing with daily situations. Firefighters with good interpersonal skills have the ability and desire to serve and help people, regardless of who they are, where they live, and what they believe. The test presents several situations which measure one’s ability to be flexible and to demonstrate good interpersonal skills:
1. Stressful situations involving a conflict. A firefighter essentially “lives” with his or her crew while on duty. In such situations, occasional conflicts are inevitable. A firefighter must be able and willing to work through the conflict by offering ideas, listening effectively, and by helping to achieve an acceptable resolution.
2. Situations requiring the person to function as a team member. A firefighter who tries to work separately from the rest of the crew will not be successful, and could put others in danger. A firefighter must demonstrate an ability to take orders, to contribute to the efforts of the team, to compromise, and to put the best interest of the team and the organization above personal interests or differences.
3. Situations in which simply being sympathetic is the best response. Firefighters often deal with people who are in a crisis, and who are emotionally distraught. Firefighters need to demonstrate a genuine caring attitude toward all people, and to have a general orientation toward providing service to citizens.
4. Situations in which there is a cultural barrier. Firefighters interact with people from all different cultures, which can present challenges in the form of communication barriers and value differences. Sometimes, what is simply a cultural difference can be perceived as a conflict. Firefighters must have an awareness and understanding of the differences between different cultures, the difficulties these differences can cause, as well as the positive and rewarding aspects of dealing with different cultures.
One of the most important pieces of good interpersonal skills is a person’s ability to be flexible in thoughts and actions. This includes being willing to change and modify one’s own communication style. It also includes a demonstrated willingness to be patient, non-judgmental, and accepting of other people. A firefighter with good interpersonal skills will recognize and respect different styles and approaches to dealing with daily situations. Firefighters with good interpersonal skills have the ability and desire to serve and help people, regardless of who they are, where they live, and what they believe. The test presents several situations which measure one’s ability to be flexible and to demonstrate good interpersonal skills:
1. Stressful situations involving a conflict. A firefighter essentially “lives” with his or her crew while on duty. In such situations, occasional conflicts are inevitable. A firefighter must be able and willing to work through the conflict by offering ideas, listening effectively, and by helping to achieve an acceptable resolution.
2. Situations requiring the person to function as a team member. A firefighter who tries to work separately from the rest of the crew will not be successful, and could put others in danger. A firefighter must demonstrate an ability to take orders, to contribute to the efforts of the team, to compromise, and to put the best interest of the team and the organization above personal interests or differences.
3. Situations in which simply being sympathetic is the best response. Firefighters often deal with people who are in a crisis, and who are emotionally distraught. Firefighters need to demonstrate a genuine caring attitude toward all people, and to have a general orientation toward providing service to citizens.
4. Situations in which there is a cultural barrier. Firefighters interact with people from all different cultures, which can present challenges in the form of communication barriers and value differences. Sometimes, what is simply a cultural difference can be perceived as a conflict. Firefighters must have an awareness and understanding of the differences between different cultures, the difficulties these differences can cause, as well as the positive and rewarding aspects of dealing with different cultures.
Practical Skills
Practical skill refers to one’s ability to know how to solve problems, rather than knowing the right answer to a particular problem. Practical intelligence is highly related to self awareness skills, interpersonal skills, and cognitive skills because all of these abilities are used in the application of practical skills.
Practical intelligence refers to the ability to solve real life problems based on incomplete information. In real life, problems have some of the following characteristics:
• they are related to everyday life and work
• they are poorly defined - they may lack some information necessary to solve the problem
• there may be multiple methods or ways to solve the problem
• there may be multiple correct or possible solutions
Practical intelligence has the characteristics of:
• being procedurally based, that is, knowing how, not knowing what
• being practically useful for accomplishing one’s individual goals
• being acquired on one’s own, through experience rather than through training or academic education
The test measures 4 aspects of practical intelligence related to the job of firefighter:
1. Practical skills in handling school or career goals. These items involve problem solving related to how to study, how to prepare for a career, how to behave in a job, etc. This predicts how successful a person will be in the training for the job and in understanding and following the job requirements in order to be successful in the job.
2. Practical skills in handling people. These items involve problem solving related to interpreting people’s attitudes and behaviors. This also includes items related to understanding how to work with others, how to work in teams, how to accomplish group goals, and other related items. This predicts how well a person can understand others’ behaviors and cooperate with others in a work environment.
3. Practical skills in using judgment and reasoning to handle everyday activities, such as buying a car, hunting for an apartment, or other common experiences. These items involve choosing from among many plausible actions to select the actions that would be most effective in accomplishing the goal presented. This predicts how effective a person is at solving everyday, but varied, problems that occur in the job, but which do not have standard, trainable responses.
4. Practical skills in using common sense and reasoning by using clues and partial information to draw conclusions about a person or statement. This predicts how well an applicant can analyze and solve problems based on incomplete information and without explicit instructions.
Practical intelligence refers to the ability to solve real life problems based on incomplete information. In real life, problems have some of the following characteristics:
• they are related to everyday life and work
• they are poorly defined - they may lack some information necessary to solve the problem
• there may be multiple methods or ways to solve the problem
• there may be multiple correct or possible solutions
Practical intelligence has the characteristics of:
• being procedurally based, that is, knowing how, not knowing what
• being practically useful for accomplishing one’s individual goals
• being acquired on one’s own, through experience rather than through training or academic education
The test measures 4 aspects of practical intelligence related to the job of firefighter:
1. Practical skills in handling school or career goals. These items involve problem solving related to how to study, how to prepare for a career, how to behave in a job, etc. This predicts how successful a person will be in the training for the job and in understanding and following the job requirements in order to be successful in the job.
2. Practical skills in handling people. These items involve problem solving related to interpreting people’s attitudes and behaviors. This also includes items related to understanding how to work with others, how to work in teams, how to accomplish group goals, and other related items. This predicts how well a person can understand others’ behaviors and cooperate with others in a work environment.
3. Practical skills in using judgment and reasoning to handle everyday activities, such as buying a car, hunting for an apartment, or other common experiences. These items involve choosing from among many plausible actions to select the actions that would be most effective in accomplishing the goal presented. This predicts how effective a person is at solving everyday, but varied, problems that occur in the job, but which do not have standard, trainable responses.
4. Practical skills in using common sense and reasoning by using clues and partial information to draw conclusions about a person or statement. This predicts how well an applicant can analyze and solve problems based on incomplete information and without explicit instructions.
Basic Educational Skills
The basic educational component is comprised of traditional intelligence measurements, including reading comprehension, writing ability, and math ability. Basic education skills are strong predictors of future success on the job. A firefighter cannot be effective without these basic abilities. In addition, these skills determine how “trainable” a person is. This test predicts the ability to comprehend and learn technical information, the ability to learn and understand the basic math and formulas required for the job, and the ability to write the reports and paperwork required on the job.
Key Differentiators from other Assessment Tools on the market include:
• Unlike other test publishers who typically provide only incumbent data, CWH can provide both incumbent and actual applicant data for our test. Our use of actual applicant data to show our adverse impact results provides a more realistic representation of what the likely adverse impact results for your candidate pool may be. In addition, a fairness analysis, based on incumbent data, is not the same as showing actual adverse impact results from actual test administrations. We provide actual data with the real cut scores that were used. Our data can help you not only to make assessments about your adverse impact results, but it allows you to compare your candidates’ results to our continuously growing national applicant pool of over 70,000 applicants.
• CWH has won the respect and support of our peers in the field of Industrial Psychology, as well as in the field of Public Safety, the industry which we serve. CWH has won a lifetime award from the Society of Industrial and Organizational Psychology. This same organization creates many of the professional standards used to guide the development and validation of selection procedures. Additionally, many independent consulting companies have recommended that their police and fire clients begin using our entry-level test as part of their hiring process. In the Public Safety arena we are a Ruby partner of the International Association of Fire Chiefs (IAFC), and can boast about having the only entry-level written test that has ever been endorsed by the IAFC. We have also partnered with the International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF) in a ground-breaking diversity study. No other company can claim such close affiliations in the public safety field.
• CWH’s entry-level test has been recommended by the U.S. Department of Justice in a landmark lawsuit due to its high validity and low adverse impact. In order to meet the burden of proof in an employment lawsuit, the Department of Justice was tasked with selecting the best test available for purchase on the market; one that had the highest possible validity, while reducing adverse impact. They chose our test as an example of the best test available to hire entry-level firefighters.
• The CWH Selection Solutions test has never been challenged in court, nor have there been any EEOC complaints against Selection Solutions. We attribute this to the fact that the test was statistically validated nationally, it was based on award-winning research and methodology, and it is the most peer reviewed and professionally reviewed test available.
• At CWH we value our ability meet and exceed professional standards for validity and job relevance. We believe that a good selection system is a technology that should be leveraged no differently than any other technologies your department is currently utilizing. CWH prides itself on being the most innovative and original company in the industry. CWH attempts to go beyond the status-quo and develop selection tools that have a strong scientific and practical basis. Our tests consistently deliver the best, most qualified candidates for your department. Unlike other companies who sell the same test year after year, we are embarking on a new validation study to develop an enhanced version of our award-winning Selection Solutions test.
