undergradly.
Major · Homeland Security, Law Enforcement & Firefighting

A trade-and-public-service track with unusually strong earnings data

Fire Science/Fire-fighting is the degree track built around firefighting theory, operations, and fire-protection systems. About 2,381 degrees are awarded each year across 210 colleges, with associate's completers reporting a five-year earnings median of $74,508 and bachelor's completers $86,245 — among the strongest earnings of any associate's-accessible major on this site. The catch is structural: all four career destinations list 'postsecondary nondegree award' or 'high school diploma' as typical education. The degree accelerates promotion into officer and inspector roles rather than gating entry to firefighting itself.

Schools offering
210
Annual completions
2,381
Typical degree level
Associate's + Bachelor's
Median earnings (5yr)
$80k

About this major

Fire Science/Fire-fighting is the theory-and-practice degree track for firefighting and fire protection. The CIP definition covers fire chemistry and physics, combustible materials, building construction, fire codes, fire hydraulics, fire command, fire prevention and inspection, fire protection systems, fire suppression systems, fire and arson investigation, occupational safety, equipment operation, emergency medicine, and communications. The single program example listed is Firefighter Training. Typical curricula at residential institutions include substantial hands-on firefighting, EMT certification, and physical-training components; online programs typically serve already-employed firefighters completing degrees for advancement and focus more on theory, administration, and prevention.

Program scale is substantial and institutionally unusual. About 2,381 degrees are awarded each year across 210 colleges, with Columbia Southern University alone producing 594 completions — 25% of the national total, reflecting the school's position as a large online institution serving working firefighters. Utah Valley University (221 combined associate's and bachelor's), Eastern Gateway Community College (94), Anna Maria College (64), University of Florida-Online (43), American Public University System (42), Bates Technical College (39), Lone Star College System (38), Honolulu Community College (37), and Volunteer State Community College (36) round out the top ten. The mix concentrates heavily at community colleges, technical colleges, and online institutions — a footprint consistent with the trade-and-public-service nature of the field. The related-majors data confirms adjacencies to Fire Prevention and Safety Technology/Technician (1,608 completions, inspection and code enforcement focus), Fire Services Administration (1,474, department management), and specialized siblings like Fire/Arson Investigation (47) and Wildland/Forest Firefighting (42).

The earnings picture is unusually strong and worth examining carefully. Associate's completers report a five-year median of $74,508, and bachelor's completers $86,245 — among the highest associate's-accessible earnings on this site and materially above many bachelor's-only majors. The career list shows four destinations. Firefighters (SOC 33-2011) at $59,530 median with 3.4% projected growth is the entry-level benchmark; first-line supervisors of firefighting and prevention workers (SOC 33-1021) at $92,430 is the lieutenant-and-captain tier typically reached 5–15 years post-hire; fire inspectors and investigators at $78,060 with 3.8% growth is a parallel specialty path; forest fire inspectors and prevention specialists at $52,380 with 14.6% growth is the fastest-growing subfield, driven by wildland-fire escalation across the Western US. Notably, all four career SOCs list 'postsecondary nondegree award' or 'high school diploma' as typical education, meaning the degree is not an entry credential for firefighting itself. The earnings premium for degreed graduates reflects faster promotion to officer ranks, better access to specialty and administrative roles, and the reality that major metropolitan departments increasingly require or prefer bachelor's degrees at hiring even when the SOC code does not.

Section 3 · Careers

Where this major leads

Occupations most often associated with this major, from the federal BLS+O*NET crosswalk. Job-growth projections and median wages are national.

Occupation Median wage Job growth Typical education
Firefighters $60k +3.4% Postsecondary nondegree award
First-line supervisors of firefighting and prevention workers $92k +3.4% Postsecondary nondegree award
Fire inspectors and investigators $78k +3.8% Postsecondary nondegree award
Forest fire inspectors and prevention specialists $52k +14.6% High school diploma or equivalent
Section 4 · Earnings

Earnings at a glance

Median graduate earnings from the federal College Scorecard, 5 and 10 years out.

Median 5-year earnings

$80k

Associate's vs Bachelor's — early-career earnings

Associate's

$75k

Bachelor's

$86k

Who this major is for

Students committed to a career in the fire service — whether as active firefighter, fire inspector, fire investigator, wildland firefighter, or department administrator — and who value the promotion acceleration and specialty-role access a degree provides are the core audience. Comfort with physically demanding work, rotating shift schedules including nights and weekends, and the structural discipline of paramilitary organizations all indicate strong fit. Students not yet employed in the fire service should verify that their chosen program includes pre-employment fire-academy preparation and EMT certification — features of residential community-college and regional-university programs that online programs serving already-credentialed firefighters often do not provide. Students targeting department-management careers should consider layering on a Fire Services Administration bachelor's or choosing a Fire Science program with strong administration coursework.

Reconsider this major if the career interest is law enforcement generally rather than firefighting specifically. Criminal Justice and its siblings (Criminal Justice/Law Enforcement Administration at 20,738 annual completions, Criminal Justice and Corrections, General at 1,490) are the correct concentration for police, corrections, and federal-agency law-enforcement careers. If the draw is emergency management or disaster response at the policy and coordination level rather than active firefighting, Crisis/Emergency/Disaster Management (1,270 completions) is more directly aligned. If the pure draw is wildland fire in natural-resource management contexts, Wildlife, Fish and Wildlands Science and Management or Forestry, General (in the Natural Resources concentration) may pair better with a wildland-firefighting specialty certification. Finally, evaluate online-program fit honestly: Columbia Southern and American Public University serve a specific population of already-employed firefighters, and for a student targeting initial fire-service employment the residential community-college programs typically provide stronger pre-hire preparation.

Section 6 · Where to study

Top colleges for Fire Science/Fire-fighting

Ranked by annual completions at the associate's or bachelor's level — a proxy for program scale.

College Location Assoc. Bach. Total
Columbia Southern University Orange Beach, AL 587 7 594
Utah Valley University Orem, UT 125 96 221
Eastern Gateway Community College Steubenville, OH 94 0 94
Anna Maria College Paxton, MA 0 64 64
University of Florida-Online Gainesville, FL 0 43 43
American Public University System Charles Town, WV 42 0 42
Bates Technical College Tacoma, WA 39 0 39
Lone Star College System The Woodlands, TX 38 0 38
Honolulu Community College Honolulu, HI 37 0 37
Volunteer State Community College Gallatin, TN 36 0 36
Section 7 · Explore sideways

Related majors to explore

Fire Prevention and Safety Technology/Technician

1,608 completions/yr

Fire Services Administration

1,474 completions/yr

Environmental/Natural Resources Law Enforcement and Protective Services

145 completions/yr

Fire/Arson Investigation and Prevention

47 completions/yr

Wildland/Forest Firefighting and Investigation

42 completions/yr

Fire Systems Technology

40 completions/yr

Fire Protection, Other

38 completions/yr
Section 9 · Frequently asked

Common questions

If firefighting jobs list 'postsecondary nondegree award' as typical education, why get the degree?
Because advancement within most US fire departments increasingly requires it, and the earnings data reflects this. Entry-level firefighter positions are accessible through fire-academy certification without a degree, but competitive applicant pools at major metropolitan departments routinely show a majority of hired candidates already holding an associate's or bachelor's in fire science. Promotion into lieutenant, captain, battalion chief, and deputy-chief ranks typically requires or strongly prefers a bachelor's degree at departments with formal career progression, and fire inspector and fire investigator roles often list a degree as a de facto requirement even when the SOC code lists nondegree awards. The $86,245 bachelor's five-year median versus $74,508 associate's reflects the combination of degreed firefighters reaching promotion faster and a mix of graduates in inspector, investigator, and fire-services-administration roles. Firefighters, first-line supervisors at $92,430 and fire inspectors at $78,060 are the realistic promotion targets that the major opens up.
Why does Columbia Southern University produce 594 completions — a quarter of the national total?
Because Columbia Southern is a large online institution serving working firefighters pursuing degrees while already employed in fire departments, and Fire Science is one of its flagship programs. Its 594 annual completions (587 associate's, 7 bachelor's) represent 25% of the national total in this CIP code. American Public University System and other online-focused institutions together account for a significant additional share. The pattern reflects a specific educational economics: active firefighters work 24-hour shift schedules that rotate, making traditional daytime classroom attendance difficult, and online programs let them build credentials for promotion while continuing to work. For prospective students not yet in the fire service, the practical signal is that many online Fire Science programs target already-employed firefighters and may not provide the same pre-employment fire-academy preparation that residential programs at community colleges and regional universities (Utah Valley, Eastern Gateway, Anna Maria, Bates Technical) offer.
What does the typical firefighter career path actually look like, and where does the degree fit?
Most paths start with an EMT certification (basic or advanced), fire-academy completion (typically 3–6 months at a state-certified academy), and hiring as a probationary firefighter at a municipal, county, or state department. Entry wages vary dramatically by region — $45K–$60K in many areas, reaching $70K–$90K at major West Coast and Northeast metropolitan departments. Promotion to driver/engineer typically requires 2–5 years; lieutenant requires 5–10; captain and above require 10–20. Parallel specialty tracks include paramedic certification (which adds significantly to wages at many departments), fire investigator (state certification plus investigative experience), fire inspector (code-enforcement background), and wildland firefighter (federal or state forestry agencies). Fire services administration at the department-management level typically requires a bachelor's. The $86,245 bachelor's five-year median captures this mix: a cohort distributed across probationary firefighters, driver/engineers, early-career officers, inspectors, and fire-services administrators.
Which SOC code should prospective students pay most attention to on the career list?
Two matter more than the others. Firefighters (SOC 33-2011) at $59,530 median with 3.4% projected growth is the entry-level benchmark — this is what new firefighters earn nationally. First-line supervisors of firefighting and prevention workers (SOC 33-1021) at $92,430 with 3.4% growth is the realistic mid-career target — lieutenant and captain ranks at most US departments, reached 5–15 years post-hire depending on department size and promotion cadence. The forest fire inspectors and prevention specialists role at $52,380 with 14.6% projected growth is worth flagging separately: that growth rate is extraordinary for any career category, driven by wildland-fire escalation across the Western US and federal investment in prevention programs. Students interested specifically in wildland firefighting should consider the Wildland/Forest Firefighting and Investigation sibling program (CIP 43.0206, 42 completions) or combine this major with relevant natural-resources coursework.
How does Fire Science compare with Fire Prevention and Safety Technology, Fire Services Administration, or Criminal Justice?
The related-majors data shows Fire Prevention and Safety Technology/Technician (CIP 43.0201, 1,608 completions) as the fire-inspector-and-code-enforcement-focused track, emphasizing safety-engineering and inspection over active firefighting. Fire Services Administration (CIP 43.0202, 1,474 completions) is the department-management track, aimed at eventual fire-chief, deputy-chief, and battalion-chief roles. Fire/Arson Investigation (CIP 43.0205, 47 completions) is the specialized investigative track. Wildland/Forest Firefighting and Investigation (CIP 43.0206, 42 completions) is the wildland-specific track. Criminal Justice is the separate law-enforcement concentration that some fire departments accept for promotion credit but that doesn't specifically prepare for fire service. Fire Science/Fire-fighting is the general firefighting track that covers active fireground operations and fire behavior alongside enough administration and prevention coursework to feed into all the specialized tracks — the most flexible choice when the specific career focus isn't yet locked in.