PURPOSE: The purpose of the U.S. Department of Defense Skillbridge internship program is to prepare, qualify, and certify active-duty military service members for a career as a civilian firefighter/Emergency Medical Technician during the last 180 days of their military enlistment. Skillbridge participants can earn mandatory firefighter or EMS certifications (depending on their start date) while working as a North Whidbey Fire & Rescue intern. Skillbridge interns will also gain valuable real-world job experience through daily fire station routine, crew communication, ambulance transport, emergency call response, as well as civil service testing process and interview skills
STRUCTURE: Skillbridge interns will be assigned a duty shift and will follow a daily schedule of expectations and responsibilities. Directives, assignments, details, and emergency calls shall have priority over the daily schedule. SUPERVISION: Skillbridge interns will report to the Full-Time duty shift firefighter for daily non-emergency work assignments, feedback, coaching and counseling. Prior to Washington State EMT certification, Skillbridge interns shall not provide direct patient care on any EMS call. Skillbridge interns working on the Aid Unit (WhidbeyHealth ambulance) may provide support needs under the direction of the Full-Time duty shift officer. The Officer-In-Charge of all Skillbridge interns will be the Training Captain. Organizational Chain-of-Command and Incident Command models will be followed.
Washington
Median pay: $95K/yr
What Firefighters typically earn in Washington — from U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data (May 2025). It's the going rate for this line of work, not this employer's offer.CareerPCS publishes these benchmarks with explicit limits so they are not mistaken for an employer offer or a prediction.Read the salary methodology