What are the recruitment stages for Calgary Fire Department?

Calgary Fire Department runs 10 stages: Online application, Fire service aptitude test, Documentation submission, Personal History Statement review, Interview, Polygraph, CPAT, Reference check, Selection committee, Conditional job offer and pre-hire checks. Stage details must be confirmed against the department's current posting.

How should I prepare for the Calgary Fire Department process?

Train the cognitive categories used in aptitude testing, build aerobic capacity and grip endurance for the physical evaluation, and prepare evidence-based answers for the competency interview.

FireReadyCanada.com

← Alberta

Alberta · Calgary

VerifiedComplete profile

CALGARY FIRE DEPARTMENT

Official careers page

Recruitment watch

Calgary takes applications in a single annual intake: 1–30 June in 2026 (the 2025 intake ran in March, so the month can change). The 2026 intake is closed. It is a ten-step ranked process — finishing every step does not guarantee a job, and the highest-ranked candidates are hired first.

Not accepting applications right now

Last checked September 23, 2026Source

A large Alberta service with strong emphasis on medical response and teamwork behaviours.

Try a free practice test

Written / aptitude test

Verified against the official posting — confirm before applying

FireTEAM (NTN)

FireTEAM video-based exam, delivered through the National Testing Network

Format: About 2.5 hours across four video-driven sections; taken at an NTN centre or virtually proctored from home
Scoring: No universal pass mark — each department sets its own cut scores. NTN does not publish exact question counts
Sections: Human Relations (video scenarios with recurring characters), Mechanical (animated factory scenario), Math (mental arithmetic — no calculator or scratch paper), Reading (fill-in-the-blank)
Validity: Scores valid 12 months
Retake rule: Retest allowed after 3 months, but retesting deletes your previous scores
Administered by: ErgoMetrics, delivered via National Testing Network (NTN)
Department specifics: Calgary tests through NTN with a two-part exam (FireTEAM plus a second component). Fee $65 USD, virtually proctored. Applications typically open June 1-30 annually (per calgary.ca) — the narrow application window is the thing most candidates miss.

Prep priority

The video format itself is the thing to rehearse — mental math with no scratch paper and paused-video judgment calls are unlike a normal written test

Source: Verified against publicly published information as of July 2026 — confirm against the current job posting.

Practice tagged to this exam

… questions for the FireTEAM (NTN)

Every question in our bank is tagged with the exam families it prepares you for, so you can practise only what applies to this department. Some questions also carry a section prefix — MAP READING, WRITING ABILITY, HUMAN RELATIONS or MENTAL MATH — matching real exam sections.

Practise FireTEAM (NTN) questions FireTEAM (NTN) format & scoring Browse the full bank (…)

Not sure this is the right exam? See which test every department in our database uses.

Recruitment roadmap

Stages are stored per department. Anything not yet confirmed against an official source is marked as requirements to be verified.

Step 1 of 10

Physical requirements

Candidate Physical Ability Test

Eight consecutive events performed as one continuous, timed sequence with a walking transition between stations. The pass standard is a total time of 10 minutes 20 seconds.

Gear: 50 lb (23 kg) weighted vest, plus an additional 25 lb (11 kg) for the stair climb only.

CPAT total time standard: 10:20

Circuit: Stair Climb · Hose Drag · Equipment Carry · Ladder Raise & Extension · Forcible Entry · Search · Rescue Drag · Ceiling Breach & Pull

Source: IAFF/IAFC Candidate Physical Ability Test

Candidate Physical Ability Test (CPAT)

Note: CPAT is one of two pre-employment fitness assessments in Calgary; the second is a WFI treadmill test after a conditional offer. Calgary offers an orientation and a timed trial before your scheduled CPAT if you test there.
Format: 8 timed events completed continuously in a weighted vest
Time limit: 10 minutes 20 seconds

Source: calgary.ca firefighter recruitment page and the 2026 NTN intake posting, checked September 2026

Questions candidates ask

Does Calgary Fire Department use CPAT?

Yes. Calgary uses CPAT at Step 7, after the polygraph, and adds a WFI treadmill test with the medical after a conditional offer — so train aerobic capacity as well as the circuit.

How far in advance should I start preparing?

Being test-ready and fitness-ready before a posting opens matters more than intense preparation after it opens.

Are the practice questions here real exam questions?

No. Every question is original training content written to reflect common recruitment task types. No legitimate provider has access to live exam material.

Get an email the day this recruitment opens

We watch official recruitment pages for Calgary Fire Department and record the status here as soon as we see a posting open.

Step 1 of 2 — Create your free account

Your alerts are tied to your account, so you can manage them and see the status of every recruitment you follow.

or create an account with email

Step 2 — Choose what to watch: Calgary Fire Department