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The New York City Fire Department's next entrance exam is tentatively scheduled for early next year, and while it won't be known for months exactly how many people show up to take the test, officials from the FDNY say the number of "interested applicants" is staggering.

Roughly 130,000 have expressed interest in surveys or online. Jonathan Ruiz, 23, caught up with recruiters in Harlem on Friday.

“They told me how to file so I can take the test and stuff like that,” said Ruiz.

FDNY officials say roughly 34 percent of interested applicants are African-American, 29 percent are Hispanic and 22 percent are female, which is good news to a department looking to diversify.

The agency has been unable to hire anyone since 2007 because Federal Judge Nicholas Garaufis ruled the last three exams discriminated against blacks and Hispanics.

Dion Hines scored 100 on the last test, but like the others, it was thrown out. He's already signed up to take the next one provided the judge signs off on it.

“I've went through both tests numerous times to try to understand what's discriminatory about this test, or what's over the head of an African-American or a Hispanic,” said Hines. “It's not the test, it's the test taker.”

In the last year and a half, FDNY recruiters have visited more than 6,000 events all over the city.

It's an effort that will continue throughout the summer.

“I think the amount of people that have expressed interest — it's the biggest number in departmental history,” said Regina Wilson of United Women Firefighters. “So if we keep moving up in those lines, I think that we have a better chance of getting the amount of women and racial minorities on this job.”

Right now, of the more than 11,000 current firefighters, just nine percent are black or Hispanic. One percent are Asian, and just 29 are women.