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Public Safety Telecommunicators
Overview
Salary
Demand
Core Tasks
Technology Skills
Tools Used
Top 10 Knowledge Required
Top 10 Skills
Top 10 Abilities
Top 10 Work Activities
Detailed Work Activities
Work Context
Education
Interests
Top 10 Work Styles
Work Values
Related Careers
Overview
Job Zone Two: Some Preparation Needed
Experience
Some previous work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is usually needed. For example, a teller would benefit from experience working directly with the public.
Education
These occupations usually require a high school diploma.
Job Training
Employees in these occupations need anywhere from a few months to one year of working with experienced employees. A recognized apprenticeship program may be associated with these occupations.
Examples
These occupations often involve using your knowledge and skills to help others. Examples include orderlies, counter and rental clerks, customer service representatives, security guards, upholsterers, and tellers.
Operate telephone, radio, or other communication systems to receive and communicate requests for emergency assistance at 9-1-1 public safety answering points and emergency operations centers. Take information from the public and other sources regarding crimes, threats, disturbances, acts of terrorism, fires, medical emergencies, and other public safety matters. May coordinate and provide information to law enforcement and emergency response personnel. May access sensitive databases and other information sources as needed. May provide additional instructions to callers based on knowledge of and certification in law enforcement, fire, or emergency medical procedures.
Salary Salary
Salary at 10th Percentile: $28K
Salary at 25th Percentile: $34K
Median Salary: $43K
Salary at 75th Percentile: $54K
Salary at 90th Percentile: $67K
Demand
Core Tasks
Determine response requirements and relative priorities of situations, and dispatch units in accordance with established procedures.
Question callers to determine their locations and the nature of their problems to determine type of response needed.
Provide emergency medical instructions to callers.
Record details of calls, dispatches, and messages.
Receive incoming telephone or alarm system calls regarding emergency and non-emergency police and fire service, emergency ambulance service, information, and after-hours calls for departments within a city.
Scan status charts and computer screens, and contact emergency response field units to determine emergency units available for dispatch.
Enter, update, and retrieve information from teletype networks and computerized data systems regarding such things as wanted persons, stolen property, vehicle registration, and stolen vehicles.
Relay information and messages to and from emergency sites, to law enforcement agencies, and to all other individuals or groups requiring notification.
Maintain access to, and security of, highly sensitive materials.
Monitor various radio frequencies, such as those used by public works departments, school security, and civil defense, to stay apprised of developing situations.
Observe alarm registers and scan maps to determine whether a specific emergency is in the dispatch service area.
Read and effectively interpret small-scale maps and information from a computer screen to determine locations and provide directions.
Operate and maintain mobile dispatch vehicles and equipment.
Maintain files of information relating to emergency calls, such as personnel rosters and emergency call-out and pager files.
Learn material and pass required tests for certification.
Answer routine inquiries, and refer calls not requiring dispatches to appropriate departments and agencies.
Monitor alarm systems to detect emergencies, such as fires and illegal entry into establishments.
Test and adjust communication and alarm systems, and report malfunctions to maintenance units.
Technology Skills
Technology
Example
Hot Technology
Tools Used
Tool
Example
Top 10 Knowledge Required
Customer and Personal Service
89%
Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
Public Safety and Security
87%
Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.
Telecommunications
84%
Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.
Clerical
83%
Knowledge of administrative and clerical procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and other office procedures and terminology.
English Language
80%
Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
Law and Government
80%
Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
Computers and Electronics
71%
Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
Geography
70%
Knowledge of principles and methods for describing the features of land, sea, and air masses, including their physical characteristics, locations, interrelationships, and distribution of plant, animal, and human life.
Psychology
69%
Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.
Communications and Media
67%
Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.
Top 10 Skills
Active Listening
85%
Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
Speaking
85%
Talking to others to convey information effectively.
Social Perceptiveness
78%
Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
Critical Thinking
75%
Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
Coordination
73%
Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.
Reading Comprehension
73%
Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
Service Orientation
70%
Actively looking for ways to help people.
Monitoring
68%
Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
Active Learning
65%
Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making.
Judgment and Decision Making
65%
Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.
Top 10 Abilities
Oral Expression
85%
The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
Oral Comprehension
83%
The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
Speech Recognition
83%
The ability to identify and understand the speech of another person.
Problem Sensitivity
80%
The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing there is a problem.
Selective Attention
80%
The ability to concentrate on a task over a period of time without being distracted.
Speech Clarity
80%
The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you.
Deductive Reasoning
75%
The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.
Inductive Reasoning
75%
The ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events).
Information Ordering
75%
The ability to arrange things or actions in a certain order or pattern according to a specific rule or set of rules (e.g., patterns of numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations).
Written Comprehension
70%
The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
Top 10 Work Activities
Communicating with Persons Outside Organization
95%
Communicating with people outside the organization, representing the organization to customers, the public, government, and other external sources. This information can be exchanged in person, in writing, or by telephone or e-mail.
Documenting/Recording Information
95%
Entering, transcribing, recording, storing, or maintaining information in written or electronic/magnetic form.
Getting Information
95%
Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources.
Interacting With Computers
95%
Using computers and computer systems (including hardware and software) to program, write software, set up functions, enter data, or process information.
Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates
94%
Providing information to supervisors, co-workers, and subordinates by telephone, in written form, e-mail, or in person.
Performing for or Working Directly with the Public
93%
Performing for people or dealing directly with the public. This includes serving customers in restaurants and stores, and receiving clients or guests.
Making Decisions and Solving Problems
91%
Analyzing information and evaluating results to choose the best solution and solve problems.
Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge
85%
Keeping up-to-date technically and applying new knowledge to your job.
Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events
84%
Identifying information by categorizing, estimating, recognizing differences or similarities, and detecting changes in circumstances or events.
Processing Information
83%
Compiling, coding, categorizing, calculating, tabulating, auditing, or verifying information or data.
Detailed Work Activities
Discuss goods or services information with customers or patrons.
Coordinate operational activities.
Maintain call records.
Operate communications equipment or systems.
Confer with coworkers to coordinate work activities.
Answer telephones to direct calls or provide information.
Search files, databases or reference materials to obtain needed information.
Enter information into databases or software programs.
Relay information between personnel.
Monitor alarm systems.
Maintain security.
Interpret blueprints, specifications, or diagrams to inform installation, development or operation activities.
Maintain current knowledge related to work activities.
Refer customers to appropriate personnel.
Provide basic health care services.
Operate vehicles or material-moving equipment.
Monitor equipment operation to ensure proper functioning.
Adjust office equipment to ensure proper operation.
Report maintenance or equipment problems to appropriate personnel.
Work Context
Telephone
How often do you have telephone conversations in this job?
Contact With Others
How much does this job require the worker to be in contact with others (face-to-face, by telephone, or otherwise) in order to perform it?
Deal With External Customers
How important is it to work with external customers or the public in this job?
Spend Time Sitting
How much does this job require sitting?
Indoors, Environmentally Controlled
How often does this job require working indoors in environmentally controlled conditions?
Importance of Being Exact or Accurate
How important is being very exact or highly accurate in performing this job?
Electronic Mail
How often do you use electronic mail in this job?
Frequency of Decision Making
How frequently is the worker required to make decisions that affect other people, the financial resources, and/or the image and reputation of the organization?
Spend Time Using Your Hands to Handle, Control, or Feel Objects, Tools, or Controls
How much does this job require using your hands to handle, control, or feel objects, tools or controls?
Face-to-Face Discussions
How often do you have to have face-to-face discussions with individuals or teams in this job?
Education
Interests
Conventional
96%
Conventional occupations frequently involve following set procedures and routines. These occupations can include working with data and details more than with ideas. Usually there is a clear line of authority to follow.
Realistic
67%
Realistic occupations frequently involve work activities that include practical, hands-on problems and solutions. They often deal with plants, animals, and real-world materials like wood, tools, and machinery. Many of the occupations require working outside, and do not involve a lot of paperwork or working closely with others.
Enterprising
58%
Enterprising occupations frequently involve starting up and carrying out projects. These occupations can involve leading people and making many decisions. Sometimes they require risk taking and often deal with business.
Social
48%
Social occupations frequently involve working with, communicating with, and teaching people. These occupations often involve helping or providing service to others.
Investigative
39%
Investigative occupations frequently involve working with ideas, and require an extensive amount of thinking. These occupations can involve searching for facts and figuring out problems mentally.
Artistic
15%
Artistic occupations frequently involve working with forms, designs and patterns. They often require self-expression and the work can be done without following a clear set of rules.
Top 10 Work Styles
Stress Tolerance
98%
Job requires accepting criticism and dealing calmly and effectively with high stress situations.
Dependability
97%
Job requires being reliable, responsible, and dependable, and fulfilling obligations.
Attention to Detail
95%
Job requires being careful about detail and thorough in completing work tasks.
Integrity
94%
Job requires being honest and ethical.
Self Control
94%
Job requires maintaining composure, keeping emotions in check, controlling anger, and avoiding aggressive behavior, even in very difficult situations.
Concern for Others
92%
Job requires being sensitive to others' needs and feelings and being understanding and helpful on the job.
Cooperation
91%
Job requires being pleasant with others on the job and displaying a good-natured, cooperative attitude.
Adaptability/Flexibility
85%
Job requires being open to change (positive or negative) and to considerable variety in the workplace.
Persistence
84%
Job requires persistence in the face of obstacles.
Initiative
80%
Job requires a willingness to take on responsibilities and challenges.
Work Values
Relationships
86%
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
86%
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
58%
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.
Independence
58%
Occupations that satisfy this work value allow employees to work on their own and make decisions. Corresponding needs are Creativity, Responsibility and Autonomy.
Working Conditions
55%
Occupations that satisfy this work value offer job security and good working conditions. Corresponding needs are Activity, Compensation, Independence, Security, Variety and Working Conditions.
Recognition
53%
Occupations that satisfy this work value offer advancement, potential for leadership, and are often considered prestigious. Corresponding needs are Advancement, Authority, Recognition and Social Status.
