How to Become a Lifeguard or Swim Instructor

To become a lifeguard, you generally need to meet a minimum age (15 for Red Cross courses, 16 for NYC Parks), pass a swimming skills test, and complete a lifeguard course that includes CPR, AED use and first aid. To teach swimming, you can take a swim instructor course such as the American Red Cross Water Safety Instructor (WSI) course, which is open to people 15 and older.

Both jobs save lives, and both are good first jobs for strong teen swimmers. Here's how each one works and how to get ready.

Why communities need lifeguards and instructors

Lifeguards and instructors make swimming safer for everyone:

• Lifeguards. The AAP lists lifeguard standards among the laws and rules proven to reduce drowning deaths (opens in a new tab). At the beach, the National Weather Service cites the U.S. Lifesaving Association's estimate that the chance of drowning at a beach with lifeguards on duty is 1 in 18 million (opens in a new tab).
• Instructors. The AAP says swim instructors should be trained and certified through a nationally recognized learn-to-swim curriculum (opens in a new tab), and that lifeguards with current CPR and First Aid certification should be on duty during lessons. Every class needs both.
• People who reflect the community. Some families need a female instructor or a women-only session before they'll swim. The women-only swim sessions that Dr. Anisa Ibrahim describes in an AAP Voices piece (opens in a new tab) depended on female lifeguards. If you speak your community's languages or share its customs, you can open the water to people who might never have come.

Lifeguard certification basics

The American Red Cross publishes its lifeguard course requirements. Here they are, as listed on its site (opens in a new tab):

• Age: at least 15 years old by the last day of class
• Prerequisite swim test: you must pass the swimming skills prerequisite before the course. It includes a swim-tread-swim sequence.
• The course: you learn and are tested on lifeguarding, water rescues, extrications, CPR and AED use, and first aid. To pass, you complete three final skills assessments.
• Formats: in person, or blended (online coursework plus in-person skills sessions)
• Certification: Lifeguarding with CPR/AED for Professional Rescuers and First Aid (opens in a new tab), valid for two years and accepted nationwide
• Recertification: a shorter review course if your certification is current or expired by no more than 30 days

To find a course, use the Red Cross class search with your ZIP code, or ask your local pool. The Red Cross suggests checking with the aquatic facility where you want to work to see which course fits the job. Some YMCAs also train lifeguards: the YMCA of Greater New York, for example, links to its lifeguard training and certification program (opens in a new tab).

Swim instructor certification

The Red Cross offers two swim instructor courses (opens in a new tab), both open to people at least 15 by the end of the course:

Instructor training covers water safety at pools, homes and natural water, plus how swimming works in the water, so you can teach it clearly.

Teaching adults. U.S. Masters Swimming administers an adult learn-to-swim curriculum and instructor certification (opens in a new tab). If you want to help adults who never learned, ask USMS about becoming a certified Adult Learn-to-Swim instructor.

The NYC Parks lifeguard program

New York City trains its own lifeguards for its beaches and pools. Here is what NYC Parks listed on October 18, 2026. Requirements can change every year, so check the official pages.

The qualifying test. Every candidate must pass the NYC Parks Lifeguard Qualifying Test (opens in a new tab), which has two parts:

• Vision: at least 20/30 in one eye and 20/40 in the other, without glasses or contact lenses. You can submit a letter from an eye doctor, dated within 30 days of your test, instead of taking the onsite eye exam.
• Swim: 50 yards within a time limit, with proper form. The two NYC Parks pages we checked gave different times (40 seconds and 50 seconds), so confirm the current standard on the test page.

Age: NYC Parks says candidates must be 16 or older by the first day of work (opens in a new tab).

When: tests are held in indoor pools in all five boroughs from late October through February. On October 18, 2026, no test dates were open yet; NYC Parks offers a sign-up to be notified when they are.

Training: after you pass, you join a 16-session training program to strengthen your swimming and learn lifesaving techniques. Certification comes after a final swim test, and NYC Parks lifeguards are also trained in CPR and first aid.

The job: lifeguards work five or six days a week at beaches such as the Rockaways and Coney Island and at more than 50 outdoor pools. NYC Parks' page listed pay of $22 an hour for the season, plus a training payment after you complete the summer.

Get ready for free with Swim Prep

NYC Parks' Swim Prep (opens in a new tab) gives free coaching to intermediate and advanced swimmers 16 and older who want to pass the lifeguard qualifying test or water safety instructor entry requirements. Coaches assess your strokes and test lifeguard-specific requirements. You'll need to pass a water competency test to join, but no recreation center membership is required. Sign up ahead for each session.

Teens and first jobs

Lifeguarding and teaching are serious jobs, and they build skills that last. NYC Parks points to CPR and first aid training, teamwork, communication and staying calm. The Red Cross lists communication, attention to detail and leadership.

Being a strong swimmer doesn't make you invincible, though. The AAP says teens may overestimate their swimming skills and misjudge water hazards (opens in a new tab). Good training includes learning your own limits and the water's. Read water safety for teens.

If you want to go further into rescue work, see water rescue training and equipment. If you'd rather share what you know with your neighborhood, see how to host a water safety workshop.

What you can do today

1. Swim a timed 50 yards at a pool with a lifeguard on duty, so you know where you stand.
2. If you're in NYC and 16 or older, sign up for a free Swim Prep session and sign up to hear about NYC Parks qualifying test dates.
3. Search the Red Cross site for lifeguarding or WSI courses near your ZIP code.
4. Ask the pool where you'd like to work which certification it requires.
5. Tell a friend. Training together keeps you both going.