The NZFBI has three Diplomas

• Associate

• Member 

• Fellow

 

Historically there were nine two hour exams, four were required for the Associate, seven for the Member and nine for the Fellow. A Member diploma is currently required to be a Councillor.

 

The Fellow Diploma is the highest level and was achieved with two additional exams. Generally each exam required 80 hours of study, meaning 160 hours could be linked to the highest certification. 

 

In the past few years the NZFBI has trialled different ways of awarding the Fellow Diploma, changing from an exam base to an application system demonstrating skill level. These didn’t deliver technical knowledge to firefighters, hence the system has now been finalised into requiring a project that will benefit our members. 

 

Existing examples are:

Electric Vehicle, Batteries & Solar 

OSM Learning Modules

 

The expectations around a successful Fellow project are:

• In line with the traditional amount of time for the Fellow (160 hours)

• Benefits firefighters and our members

• Ideally in an online version that can be hosted on the NZFBI website

• Can be a PDF, or use the council’s existing software

• Suitable assistance to develop the project will be provided by the council

 

Potential future projects may be

• Interview skills for Fire and Emergency positions

• Small and/or Large animal rescue

• Emerging Risks, such as scrapyard fires