Joanne Gibson
11 September 2025
•4 min read
What you need to qualify as a paramedic
To work as a paramedic in the UK, you need to be registered with the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC). Callum explains that completing a university degree is a key requirement for this.
“You need to have a degree in paramedic science,” he says. “I went to Glasgow Caledonian University for 3 years, and I studied hard. After that, I became a paramedic with the Scottish Ambulance Service.”
Callum’s own journey started with volunteering and working as an Emergency Medical Technician to gain experience before applying to university.
Go behind the scenes with Callum
The best advice comes directly from experience. Watch the full interview to go behind the scenes with Callum, hear about the realities and rewards of the job in his own words. You'll also learn about the skills you need and how to start your career in the ambulance service.
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Scene one video: Responding to a patient with chest pain
This video places you inside an ambulance with paramedics Callum and Julie-Anne. They are treating Kerryanne, a patient experiencing serious chest pain. The scene begins just after they have performed an electrocardiogram (ECG) and identified a potential cardiac event, requiring urgent hospital treatment.
Watch as Callum makes a time-critical call to a specialist cardiac unit, known as a cath lab. In a calm and professional manner, he relays the patient’s vital signs, ECG results, and symptoms to the hospital team. This demonstrates the clear and concise communication required in an emergency situation.
Following the call, the focus shifts to teamwork. Callum and Julie-Anne work together seamlessly to prepare and administer the medications requested by the hospital. This part of the scene highlights the importance of following clinical procedures and ensuring patient safety under pressure.
Throughout the fast-moving situation, Callum takes time to explain what is happening to Kerryanne in simple terms. He provides constant reassurance, manages her anxiety, and ensures she is safe and comfortable before they begin the journey to the hospital, showing how vital patient-centred care is to the role.
Scene two video: Assessing a patient after a fall
This video shows a different, but very common, aspect of a paramedic's work, a primary care call. Watch as Callum and Julie-Anne enter a patient's home to treat Katie, who has slipped on the ice and injured her arm. The scene immediately highlights the importance of building rapport and trust through calm and clear communication.
The paramedics work as an efficient team, with one taking vital signs while the other conducts a focused, hands-on assessment. Callum demonstrates key clinical skills by asking for consent before touching the patient, testing for weakness and pain, and gathering a thorough medical history to inform his decision-making.
After forming a plan to go to the hospital for an X-ray, the focus turns to holistic patient care. Callum asks about Katie’s social support and practical needs for the hospital trip. Throughout the scene, he makes sure the patient feels safe and informed. He explains each step and repeatedly checks if Katie has any questions.
Callum's insight: More than just emergency calls
While the videos show the intensity of an emergency call, that's only part of the story. Callum shares more about the practical skills, personal attributes, and career opportunities that define the role of a paramedic.
Get your driving licence first
A surprising amount of the job involves driving, and a standard licence isn’t enough. Callum advises that this is the first practical step you should take.
To drive frontline ambulances, you'll need:
- a full UK driving licence
- a C1 category licence, which allows you to drive vehicles up to 7.5 tonnes
“I would advise that if you have your driver's license, good, but you need to get your C1,” Callum notes. “That would be the first thing I would tackle before applying for the ambulance service.”
The reality of emergency calls
Callum is clear that the job is very different from how it is portrayed in films and television. The reality involves a much wider variety of patient needs.
“This job is nothing like what it is like in the movies,” he states. “90% of the stuff we go to would be more primary care, like trying to bring help to an elderly person who's fallen, or they've been unwell for a couple of days.”
While paramedics do attend major emergencies, the variety keeps the job interesting. One moment, you're helping an older person who has fallen. Next, you could be assessing a critically unwell traveller at an airport.
Essential skills for patient care
Treating patients effectively requires more than just medical knowledge. According to Callum, strong communication and empathy are vital skills that you will use on every single call.
He highlights the most important transferable skills for the role:
- Good communication—To explain situations clearly and calmly.
- Empathy and emotional understanding—To connect with people in distress.
- Good listening skills—To pick up on key details in what a patient is telling you.
“Coming from a care background, I used to work in a care home,” Callum adds. “A lot of the skills I developed from there… a lot of that was transferable.”
A career with many routes
Becoming a paramedic doesn't mean you will spend your entire career in an ambulance. The profession is constantly evolving and offers many opportunities for development.
Within the ambulance service, you could specialise in areas like:
- special operations, like the hazardous area response team
- telephone consultations in the call centre
- critical or primary care roles
Find out more about roles in the Scottish Ambulance Service.
Callum's advice for starting your journey
Callum’s main advice is to get hands-on experience in a caring role to prepare for a career as a paramedic.
“I would advise getting a job, maybe working as a carer or maybe working in the event first aid side of things or volunteering, just to build your communication skills for this job.”
This experience provides a strong foundation for the role's challenges and rewards. For Callum, the reward is clear: “I have the privilege of helping people in their time of need in my community. And that's something that I take a lot of pride in.”
Discover more allied health professions
Check out our AHP career guide and explore how you can become an allied health professional.