How to Become an EMT: What EMTs Do and How Long EMT Training Takes

An Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) is the level of EMS provider most people picture on an ambulance. Becoming one is a short, well-defined path: complete a state-approved EMT course, pass the certification exams (in most states, the National Registry's), and get licensed by the state you will work in.

What does an EMT do?

An EMT provides basic life support (BLS). The National EMS Scope of Practice Model, published by the NHTSA Office of EMS, describes what the EMT level covers nationally, and each state sets the scope that actually applies, often with further limits from a medical director and an agency.

In broad strokes, an EMT is trained to:

• Assess a patient: the scene, a primary and secondary assessment, vital signs and a history.
• Manage the airway and breathing with oxygen, bag-valve-mask ventilation, basic airway adjuncts and suction.
• Perform CPR and use an AED.
• Control bleeding, splint injuries and apply spinal motion restriction.
• Assist with a normal childbirth.
• Give or help a patient take a short list of medications, such as aspirin, oral glucose, an epinephrine auto-injector and naloxone.
• Move and transport patients safely, and hand them over to the receiving staff with a report.

IV access, cardiac monitor interpretation and most medications are outside the EMT level in the national model. Those belong to the Advanced EMT and Paramedic levels, which the EMT vs Paramedic section in this library compares side by side.

EMTs work on ambulances, in fire departments, on interfacility transport crews, at events, and in some hospital emergency departments, among other places. Many build a long career at the EMT level; others use it as a first step toward paramedic school or another health profession.

Step 1: Check the prerequisites

Admission requirements vary by program. Common ones are a minimum age, a high school diploma or equivalent, a current CPR credential, a background check, and immunizations or a health screening, because the course can put you in clinical settings. Each program publishes its own list.

Step 2: Complete a state-approved EMT course

EMT courses are taught to the National EMS Education Standards and are offered by community colleges, technical schools, fire and EMS agencies and other training providers. A course combines classroom instruction with a skills lab where you practice assessment, airway management, CPR, bleeding control and splinting, and many programs add some clinical or field observation time.

Before you enroll, confirm that the course is approved by your state EMS office and that its graduates are eligible to test with the National Registry. The state licensure section in this library lists every state and its EMS office where verified.

Is an "EMT-Basic" course the same thing?

Yes, in practice. EMT-Basic is the older name for the level the current national model calls EMT, and many people and some programs still use it. If a course is described as EMT-Basic, check that it teaches to the current National EMS Education Standards and leads to the National Registry's EMT certification.

How long is EMT training?

An EMT course is commonly completed in a single academic term. Accelerated formats are shorter and part-time or evening formats run longer, and your state and your program set the exact length and any clinical requirements. Your program will tell you its schedule.

Allow some time after the course as well: you still have to sit the National Registry exams and apply for a state license before you can work.

Step 3: The National Registry exams

This step applies in states that use the National Registry. Most states use Registry certification; some run their own state exam instead, and your state EMS office will tell you which yours does. National certification comes from the National Registry of EMTs and has two parts at the EMT level, as at every level. The psychomotor requirement is a hands-on skills check, verified by your state or your program, and normally comes first. The cognitive exam is a computer-adaptive test. The Getting certified section in this library walks through the process, and the current exam format, fees and attempt limits are on the Registry's own pages.

Step 4: State licensure

National certification is not a license to practice. Your state EMS office licenses you, usually on the strength of your Registry certification plus its own requirements, and you may also need credentialing with the agency you join. The state licensure section in this library lists every state and its EMS office where verified, and the office is where the current rules are.

What comes next

• Keep your certification current. The recertification section in this library covers the National Registry's requirements.
• Compare the levels above yours. The EMT vs Paramedic section explains what the Advanced EMT and Paramedic levels add.
• If you want to go further, the How to Become a Paramedic section walks through the next step, and the Getting certified section covers the National Registry process at every level.

National Registry of Emergency Medical Technicians: National Registry of EMTs: EMT certification requirements and exams

NHTSA Office of EMS: NHTSA Office of EMS: the National EMS Scope of Practice Model and the National EMS Education Standards