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Lifeguards, Ski Patrol, and Other Recreational Protective Service Workers
Monitor recreational areas, such as pools, beaches, or ski slopes, to provide assistance and protection to participants.
Also Known As:
Beach Attendant
Beach Lifeguard
Lifeguard
Marine Safety Officer
Ocean Lifeguard
Ocean Lifeguard Specialist
Pool Attendant
Pool Lifeguard
Ski Patrol Paramedic
Ski Patroller
Wages
Annual wages for Lifeguards, Ski Patrol, and Other Recreational Protective Service Workers in United States
Job Outlook
Bright
New job opportunities are very likely in the future
United States
2033 Projected Employment
137,900
7% Change From 2023
Explore Lifeguards, Ski Patrol, and Other Recreational Protective Service Workers video
Tasks you might complete in a day.
- Rescue distressed persons, using rescue techniques and equipment.
- Observe activities in assigned areas, using binoculars, to detect hazards, disturbances, or safety infractions.
- Provide assistance in the safe use of equipment, such as ski lifts.
- Patrol or monitor recreational areas, such as trails, slopes, or swimming areas, on foot, in vehicles, or from towers.
- Participate in recreational demonstrations to entertain resort guests.
- Operate underwater recovery units.
- Inspect recreational equipment, such as rope tows, T-bars, J-bars, or chair lifts, for safety hazards and damage or wear.
- Warn recreational participants of inclement weather, unsafe areas, or illegal conduct.
- Provide assistance with staff selection, training, and supervision.
- Complete and maintain records of weather and beach conditions, emergency medical treatments performed, and other relevant incident information.
- Instruct participants in skiing, swimming, or other recreational activities and provide safety precaution information.
- Examine injured persons and administer first aid or cardiopulmonary resuscitation, if necessary, using training and medical supplies and equipment.
- Complete and maintain records of weather and beach conditions, emergency medical treatments performed, and other relevant incident information.
- Contact emergency medical personnel in case of serious injury.
- Observe activities in assigned areas, using binoculars, to detect hazards, disturbances, or safety infractions.
- Maintain quality of pool water by testing chemical levels.
- Inspect recreational facilities for cleanliness.
Subject areas you may need to master.
- Mechanical - Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
- Geography - 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 - 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.
- Education and Training - Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
- History and Archeology - Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.
- Philosophy and Theology - Knowledge of different philosophical systems and religions. This includes their basic principles, values, ethics, ways of thinking, customs, practices, and their impact on human culture.
- Telecommunications - Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.
- Sociology and Anthropology - Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins.
- Administration and Management - Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
- Economics and Accounting - Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.
- Communications and Media - Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.
- Customer and Personal Service - 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.
- Transportation - Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.
- Sales and Marketing - Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.
- Administrative - Knowledge of administrative and office procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and workplace terminology.
- Personnel and Human Resources - Knowledge of principles and procedures for personnel recruitment, selection, training, compensation and benefits, labor relations and negotiation, and personnel information systems.
- Medicine and Dentistry - Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.
- Mathematics - Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
- Chemistry - Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.
- Foreign Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of a foreign (non-English) language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition and grammar, and pronunciation.
- Food Production - Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.
- Design - Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
- Production and Processing - Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.
- Physics - Knowledge and prediction of physical principles, laws, their interrelationships, and applications to understanding fluid, material, and atmospheric dynamics, and mechanical, electrical, atomic and sub-atomic structures and processes.
- Engineering and Technology - Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.
- Biology - Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
- English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, and rules of composition and grammar.
- Fine Arts - Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.
- Public Safety and Security - 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.
- Law and Government - Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
- Building and Construction - Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.
- Therapy and Counseling - Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.
- Computers and Electronics - Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
Strengths you may need in this role.
- Repairing - Repairing machines or systems using the right tools.
- Persuasion - Talking people into changing their minds or their behavior.
- Quality Control Analysis - Testing how well a product or service works.
- Writing - Writing things for co-workers or customers.
- Programming - Writing computer programs.
- Systems Evaluation - Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.
- Troubleshooting - Figuring out what is causing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs to not work.
- Management of Financial Resources - Making spending decisions and keeping track of what is spent.
- Complex Problem Solving - Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.
- Equipment Maintenance - Planning and doing the basic maintenance on equipment.
- Speaking - Talking to others.
- Coordination - Changing what is done based on other people's actions.
- Equipment Selection - Deciding what kind of tools and equipment are needed to do a job.
- Learning Strategies - Using the best training or teaching strategies for learning new things.
- Social Perceptiveness - Understanding people's reactions.
- Operations Analysis - Figuring out what a product or service needs to be able to do.
- Reading Comprehension - Reading work-related information.
- Service Orientation - Looking for ways to help people.
- Science - Using scientific rules and strategies to solve problems.
- Mathematics - Using math to solve problems.
- Management of Personnel Resources - Selecting and managing the best workers for a job.
- Operation and Control - Using equipment or systems.
- Management of Material Resources - Managing equipment and materials.
- Critical Thinking - Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.
- Active Learning - Figuring out how to use new ideas or things.
- Monitoring - Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements.
- Instructing - Teaching people how to do something.
- Negotiation - Bringing people together to solve differences.
- Operations Monitoring - Watching gauges, dials, or display screens to make sure a machine is working.
- Judgment and Decision Making - Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one.
- Systems Analysis - Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it.
- Time Management - Managing your time and the time of other people.
- Technology Design - Making equipment and technology useful for customers.
- Installation - Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs.
- Active Listening - Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.
- Number Facility - Adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing.
- Hearing Sensitivity - Telling the difference between sounds.
- Spatial Orientation - Knowing where things are around you.
- Gross Body Equilibrium - Keeping your balance or staying upright.
- Glare Sensitivity - Seeing something even if there is a glare or very bright light.
- Speech Clarity - Speaking clearly.
- Problem Sensitivity - Noticing when problems happen.
- Deductive Reasoning - Using rules to solve problems.
- Far Vision - Seeing details that are far away.
- Flexibility of Closure - Seeing hidden patterns.
- Extent Flexibility - Bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching with your body, arms, and/or legs.
- Night Vision - Seeing at night or under low light.
- Information Ordering - Ordering or arranging things.
- Dynamic Flexibility - Quickly and repeatedly bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching out with your body, arms, and/or legs.
- Sound Localization - Noticing the direction that a sound came from.
- Visual Color Discrimination - Noticing the difference between colors, including shades and brightness.
- Fluency of Ideas - Coming up with lots of ideas.
- Originality - Creating new and original ideas.
- Manual Dexterity - Holding or moving items with your hands.
- Memorization - Remembering words, numbers, pictures, or steps.
- Time Sharing - Doing two or more things at the same time.
- Rate Control - Changing when and how fast you move based on how something else is moving.
- Trunk Strength - Using your lower back and stomach.
- Auditory Attention - Paying attention to one sound while there are other distracting sounds.
- Dynamic Strength - Exercising for a long time without your muscles getting tired.
- Category Flexibility - Grouping things in different ways.
- Speed of Closure - Quickly knowing what you are looking at.
- Arm-Hand Steadiness - Keeping your arm or hand steady.
- Stamina - Exercising for a long time without getting out of breath.
- Visualization - Imagining how something will look after it is moved around or changed.
- Multilimb Coordination - Using your arms and/or legs together while sitting, standing, or lying down.
- Perceptual Speed - Quickly comparing groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.
- Finger Dexterity - Putting together small parts with your fingers.
- Speed of Limb Movement - Quickly moving your arms and legs.
- Peripheral Vision - Seeing something to your side when your are looking ahead.
- Written Comprehension - Reading and understanding what is written.
- Written Expression - Communicating by writing.
- Inductive Reasoning - Making general rules or coming up with answers from lots of detailed information.
- Reaction Time - Quickly moving your hand, finger, or foot based on a sound, light, picture or other command.
- Explosive Strength - Jumping, sprinting, or throwing something.
- Selective Attention - Paying attention to something without being distracted.
- Response Orientation - Quickly deciding if you should move your hand, foot, or other body part.
- Near Vision - Seeing details up close.
- Wrist-Finger Speed - Making fast, simple, repeated movements of your fingers, hands, and wrists.
- Control Precision - Quickly changing the controls of a machine, car, truck or boat.
- Static Strength - Lifting, pushing, pulling, or carrying.
- Gross Body Coordination - Moving your arms, legs, and mid-section together while your whole body is moving.
- Depth Perception - Deciding which thing is closer or farther away from you, or deciding how far away it is from you.
- Speech Recognition - Recognizing spoken words.
- Mathematical Reasoning - Choosing the right type of math to solve a problem.
- Oral Comprehension - Listening and understanding what people say.
- Oral Expression - Communicating by speaking.
Average Education Attained
Highest level of education earned by people in this career.
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Content sourced from United States Department of Labor Employment and Training Administration ("DOLETA") and the Minnesota Department of Employment & Economic Development ("DEED")