Fire Service Administration Degreees
Experienced fire fighters may want to pursue increasing levels of responsibility over their career, putting to use their expertise by supervising others. Fire fighters who pursue supervisory or management positions are increasingly required to have college degrees. Fire service administration degree programs are the most relevant programs for this career path and provide and education that teaches management and administration skills as well as advanced fire fighting knowledge.
Moving up the ranks as a fire fighter, especially to the supervisory levels can be difficult because of the low number of jobs available and competition for available positions. Gaining a college education in fire service administration is an important step towards reaching a supervisory level or moving to even higher levels of responsibility.
Degree Options
- Associate's Degree – Associate's degree programs provide basic education for fire fighters, insurance investigators, construction engineers and those in related fields.
- Bachelor's Degree – Graduates of a bachelor's degree program will be positioned to move into fire fighting supervisory and administrative positions.
- Master's Degree – Master's degree programs will enable graduates to pursue higher level management roles.
Schools
Most fire service administration programs are intended for actively working fire fighters. These programs are often very flexible and may include distance learning, intensive compressed courses, independent study and credit for prior learning experiences. Programs are available at a limited number of campus-based colleges as well as at a number of high-quality online schools.
Coursework
Coursework included in a fire services administration program will include courses similar to those described below:
- Legal Aspects of Fire Protection – Students learn federal and state laws, codes and ordinances as well as legal responsibilities, liabilities and law enforcement procedures.
- Fire Personnel Management – Topics include personnel resource planning, selection, and promotion, training needs and labor-management negotiations.
- Fiscal Management - Examines budget process including resource and operations planning, expenditures, regulations, productivity and creation of a budget.
- Fire Inspection and Investigation – Covers prevention, inspection, fire pattern analysis, fire modeling and fire reconstruction.
- Disaster Planning and Control – Students learn risk assessment and planning which includes topics such as mutual aid, communications, training and preparedness, hazardous materials, natural disasters and disaster recovery.
Aptitudes and Interests
Those who want to pursue a fire fighting supervisory or administrative position must have demonstrated strong job performance as a fire fighter and gained expertise in advanced fire fighting techniques. They need to have leadership qualities such as the ability to take charge and make good judgments in stressful situations knowing their decisions can affect the safety of those they oversee.
Career Options
Fire Fighting Supervisors and Administrators work in local or regional fire departments, forest service fire departments, state and federal installations and private agencies.
Related Majors
- Fire Science - Students gain a robust understanding of fires and fire fighting.
- Emergency Management - Program teaches how to prepare for and respond to a variety of natural and man-made emergency situations.
- Public Safety - Students gain a multi-disciplinary education in preparation for a wide array of public safety roles.
- Homeland Security - Programs focus on prevention and response to national security threats.
How To Evaluate Fire Service Administration Degree Programs
When choosing a fire service administration degree program, the following factors can help in the evaluation:
- Program Focus – Curriculums vary between schools with some programs emphasizing management while others emphasize technical knowledge.
- Flexibility - For working fire fighters, the amount of flexibility in the program can affect how long it will take to earn the degree.
- Prior Credit - The amount of credit a program will give for prior learning should be evaluated as it will affect the length of the program.
- Tuition Reimbursement - Individuals should verify that their employer's tuition reimbursement program will cover the program they are considering.
- Accreditation - Schools should be accredited by one of the six regional accreditation agencies. Employers may not provide tuition reimbursement or recognize a degree earned from programs without this accreditation.
Resources
International Association of Fire Fighters
National Fire Service – Higher Education
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