Ambulance Drivers and Attendants, Except Emergency Medical Technicians
US occupation · SOC 53-3011
Job titles people report: Ambulance Driver, Chair Car Driver, CPR Ambulance Driver (Cardio Pulmonary Resuscitation Ambulance Driver), Driver, Driver Medic, ECA (Emergency Care Attendant), Emergency Vehicle Operator, EMS Driver (Emergency Medical Services Driver), First Responder, Medical Van Driver (Medi-Van Driver)
Pay and outlook
- Median annual wage, May 2025
- $35,450
- Half earn more, half earn less
- Middle half earn
- $30,750 – $38,410
- 25th to 75th percentile
- People employed, May 2025
- 12,630
- Wage and salary jobs (OEWS)
- Projected change, 2025–35
- -1.3%
- Shrinking (below 0%)
- Openings a year (projected)
- 1,400
- New jobs plus replacing people who leave
- Typical education to enter
- High school diploma or equivalent
- BLS
- All figures are for the United States as a whole. Pay varies a lot by state and city.
- Wages are for everyone working in the occupation in May 2025, at every career stage. They are not starting salaries or figures for new graduates.
- Growth and openings are BLS projections for 2025–35. They are estimates, not promises. Openings include jobs that open up when people retire or change occupation, not just new jobs.
What the work involves
Drive ambulance or assist ambulance driver in transporting sick, injured, or convalescent persons. Assist in lifting patients.
Main tasks
- Place patients on stretchers, and load stretchers into ambulances, usually with assistance from other attendants.
- Replace supplies and disposable items on ambulances.
- Accompany and assist emergency medical technicians on calls.
- Earn and maintain appropriate certifications.
- Drive ambulances or assist ambulance drivers in transporting sick, injured, or convalescent persons.
- Administer first aid, such as bandaging, splinting, or administering oxygen.
- Remove and replace soiled linens or equipment to maintain sanitary conditions.
- Report facts concerning accidents or emergencies to hospital personnel or law enforcement officials.
Description and tasks from the O*NET® 31.0 Database.
Getting in
- Typical education to enter (BLS)
- High school diploma or equivalent
- Training once hired: moderate-term on-the-job training
- O*NET Job Zone 1–2
- Little to some preparation
- Usually requires a high school diploma or GED, though some occupations may not.
Interests it suits
The strongest of the six O*NET interest types for this occupation, highest first. The short glosses are ours.
- Realistic: hands-on work with tools, machines, plants or animals
- Social: helping, teaching and caring for people
- Conventional: organising information, records and procedures
Fields of study that lead here
From the federal CIP–SOC crosswalk, which links 1 programme to this occupation. A link means the programme prepares people for this kind of work. It doesn't mean the programme is required, or that it's the only route.
Health & Nursing
- Emergency Care Attendant (EMT Ambulance)
Find colleges that fit you with our matcher: choose Health & Nursing at the Major step.
Where many students take health & nursing
- Western Governors UniversitySalt Lake City, UT · 26% of degrees · 155,088 undergraduates
- Grand Canyon UniversityPhoenix, AZ · 33% of degrees · 73,371 undergraduates
- Southern New Hampshire UniversityManchester, NH · 8% of degrees · 163,164 undergraduates
- The University of Texas at ArlingtonArlington, TX · 36% of degrees · 32,294 undergraduates
- University of Central FloridaOrlando, FL · 13% of degrees · 59,146 undergraduates
- University of South FloridaTampa, FL · 17% of degrees · 37,207 undergraduates
Ordered by the field's share of degrees awarded times undergraduate enrolment (College Scorecard), among colleges with at least 1,000 undergraduates. Online universities are included. It's a rough measure of how big the programme is. It says nothing about quality. The share counts every programme in the field, not only the ones linked to this career.
Related careers
Related occupations from the O*NET database, in its order.
- Emergency Medical Technicians
$44,470 median · +5.8% projected
- Paramedics
$60,600 median · +5.7% projected
- Nursing Assistants
$42,260 median · +2.6% projected
- Home Health Aides
$35,800 median · +18.1% projected
- Surgical Assistants
$66,800 median · +6.1% projected
- Medical Assistants
$45,690 median · +12.9% projected
Sources
This page includes information from the O*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. CollegeMatcher has modified all or some of this information. USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications. O*NET 31.0 Database · CC BY 4.0
Changes: we show the core tasks in the O*NET database with the highest importance ratings (up to eight, in that order), the top three O*NET interest types by score, and shortened Job Zone names. Titles, descriptions and task text are unchanged.
Wages: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025. Projections, typical entry education and training: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment Projections 2025–35. Fields of study: NCES and BLS CIP 2020–SOC 2018 Crosswalk. All public domain. OEWS · Employment Projections · CIP–SOC crosswalk