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What does a lifeguard/head lifeguard do?

Updated January 8, 2025
4 min read
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Lifeguard/head lifeguard responsibilities

Here are examples of responsibilities from real lifeguard/head lifeguard resumes:

  • Manage and trained15 lifeguards, which develop leadership skills, provide experience handling administrative issues.
  • Supervise pool maintenance, CPR, AED-PR, first-aid, record keeping, and customer service
  • Examine injured persons/administered first aid or cardiopulmonary resuscitation, if necessary.
  • Examine injured persons and administer first aid or cardiopulmonary resuscitation when necessary.
  • Obtain and maintain required certifications.
  • Maintain all first-aid and medical emergency equipment.
  • Position lifeguard team members throughout the amusement park and oversee general lifeguard operations.
  • Ensure first-rate lifeguard performance during pool hours, providing maximum safety and customer satisfaction.
  • Work seasonally and given leadership accountability for supervising lifeguards and overseeing water activities and lessons at the club pool.
  • Provide first aid for patrons in a large facility filling out incident and accident reports when necessary.
  • Position require constant alertness for immediate action with precise decision making.
  • Examine injured individuals, administer first aid.

Lifeguard/head lifeguard skills and personality traits

We calculated that 22% of Lifeguards/Head Lifeguards are proficient in First-Aid, Customer Service, and Water Safety.

We break down the percentage of Lifeguards/Head Lifeguards that have these skills listed on their resume here:

  • First-Aid, 22%

    Maintained all first-aid and medical emergency equipment.

  • Customer Service, 14%

    Recognized for consistently perfect customer service and strong leadership, resulting in advancement to Head Lifeguard position.

  • Water Safety, 10%

    Cooperated with other instructors to ensure that water safety/swimming lessons were conducted according to appropriate guidelines.

  • Emergency Situations, 7%

    Assisted in training and development of fellow staff in emergency and non-emergency situations.

  • Cleanliness, 6%

    Supervised lifeguards and facility ensuring safety and cleanliness at the facility.

  • Aquatic Facility, 6%

    Supervised and allocated responsibilities to guarantee safety and function of aquatic facility.

"first-aid," "customer service," and "water safety" are among the most common skills that lifeguards/head lifeguards use at work. You can find even more lifeguard/head lifeguard responsibilities below, including:

Most common lifeguard/head lifeguard skills

The three companies that hire the most lifeguard/head lifeguards are:

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Lifeguard/Head Lifeguard Resume
Lifeguard/Head Lifeguard Resume
Lifeguard/Head Lifeguard Resume
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Lifeguard/Head Lifeguard Resume
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Lifeguard/Head Lifeguard Resume
Lifeguard/Head Lifeguard Resume
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Compare different lifeguards/head lifeguards

Lifeguard/head lifeguard vs. Ski patrol director

As the name entails, swim instructors teach both children and adults how to swim. They help people develop their swimming ability through proper swimming techniques. Their responsibilities include ensuring that all swimming equipment is in good condition, evaluating student performance and providing feedback, and preparing reports on attendance and accidents. They are also responsible for preventing injuries and accidents through monitoring. There are several requirements to become a successful swim instructor that may include previous experience as a swim instructor, certifications on CPR and first aid, and swimming abilities.

If we compare the average lifeguard/head lifeguard annual salary with that of a ski patrol director, we find that ski patrol directors typically earn a $25,179 higher salary than lifeguards/head lifeguards make annually.

While similarities exist, there are also some differences between lifeguards/head lifeguards and ski patrol director. For instance, lifeguard/head lifeguard responsibilities require skills such as "first-aid," "customer service," "water safety," and "emergency situations." Whereas a ski patrol director is skilled in "patrol," "emt," "cpr," and "aed." This is part of what separates the two careers.

The education levels that ski patrol directors earn slightly differ from lifeguards/head lifeguards. In particular, ski patrol directors are 1.3% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree than a lifeguard/head lifeguard. Additionally, they're 4.6% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

Lifeguard/head lifeguard vs. Swim instructor

Swim instructor positions earn lower pay than lifeguard/head lifeguard roles. They earn a $2,374 lower salary than lifeguards/head lifeguards per year.A few skills overlap for lifeguards/head lifeguards and swim instructors. Resumes from both professions show that the duties of each career rely on skills like "customer service," "water safety," and "emergency situations. "

Each career also uses different skills, according to real lifeguard/head lifeguard resumes. While lifeguard/head lifeguard responsibilities can utilize skills like "first-aid," "aquatic facility," "in-service training," and "pool maintenance," swim instructors use skills like "lifeguard," "kids," "work ethic," and "strong work ethic."

Swim instructors may earn a lower salary than lifeguards/head lifeguards, but swim instructors earn the most pay in the education industry with an average salary of $28,059. On the other hand, lifeguards/head lifeguards receive higher pay in the education industry, where they earn an average salary of $29,741.swim instructors earn similar levels of education than lifeguards/head lifeguards in general. They're 0.8% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 4.6% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

Lifeguard/head lifeguard vs. Water safety instructor

On average scale, water safety instructors bring in lower salaries than lifeguards/head lifeguards. In fact, they earn a $781 lower salary per year.lifeguards/head lifeguards and water safety instructors both have job responsibilities that require similar skill sets. These similarities include skills such as "customer service," "water safety," and "emergency situations," but they differ when it comes to other required skills.

The required skills of the two careers differ considerably. For example, lifeguards/head lifeguards are more likely to have skills like "first-aid," "cleanliness," "pool maintenance," and "lifeguard training." But a water safety instructor is more likely to have skills like "learn-to-swim," "head lifeguard," "private lessons," and "course objectives."

Water safety instructors earn the highest salary when working in the education industry, where they receive an average salary of $29,015. Comparatively, lifeguards/head lifeguards have the highest earning potential in the education industry, with an average salary of $29,741.When it comes to education, water safety instructors tend to earn similar degree levels compared to lifeguards/head lifeguards. In fact, they're 1.7% more likely to earn a Master's Degree, and 0.1% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.

Lifeguard/head lifeguard vs. Ski patrol

Ski patrols tend to earn a higher pay than lifeguards/head lifeguards by an average of $4,585 per year.While both lifeguards/head lifeguards and ski patrols complete day-to-day tasks using similar skills like first-aid, emergency situations, and resuscitation, the two careers vary in some skills.While some skills are required in each professionacirc;euro;trade;s responsibilities, there are some differences to note. "customer service," "water safety," "cleanliness," and "aquatic facility" are skills that commonly show up on lifeguard/head lifeguard resumes. On the other hand, ski patrols use skills like patrol, trail maintenance, cpr, and guest service on their resumes.The average resume of ski patrols showed that they earn similar levels of education compared to lifeguards/head lifeguards. So much so that theyacirc;euro;trade;re 2.8% more likely to earn a Master's Degree and more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree by 0.5%.

Types of lifeguard/head lifeguard

Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Research Team
Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

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