The DFES Firefighter Assessment is a pre-employment assessment used by the Department of Fire and Emergency Services (DFES) to screen Career Firefighter applicants, delivered online as Stage Two of the recruitment process - after the initial online application stage and before the Beep Test, tunnel crawl, and circuit assessments. The session covers a cognitive assessment, most commonly comprised of verbal reasoning, numerical reasoning, error checking, spatial awareness, mechanical reasoning, and diagrammatic reasoning, alongside a personality assessment measuring behavioural traits against the Firefighter Success Profile.
DFES firefighters respond to emergencies across Western Australia involving structure fires, vehicle accidents, and rescues, and assist with search-and-rescue operations on land and at sea alongside WA Police Force and St John WA. The role also includes community education, property inspections for fire safety compliance, and bushfire mitigation activities. The role calls for teamwork, physical fitness, and strong communication skills, and successful recruits commit to 15 weeks of training at the WA Fire and Emergency Services Academy in Forrestfield. More detail on the role is available on DFES's own careers page.
Recruitment runs through a staged process: after you apply via the DFES website or Jobs WA, shortlisted applicants sit the cognitive and personality assessment covered on this page. Candidates who clear this stage move on to the Beep Test, a shuttle-run cardiovascular test where a level of 8.7 must be achieved to progress, a tunnel crawl completed in breathing apparatus and a frosted mask within 10 minutes, and a circuit assessment of physical tasks completed in breathing apparatus or a 14kg weighted vest. This is followed by a written assessment task, speed interviews, and panel interviews, then final validations covering driving proficiency, medical assessment, and referee and police checks.