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2023 Most Popular Fire Protection Schools

493 Colleges
$53,963 Avg Salary
$19,479 Avg Student Debt

Finding the Best Fire Protection School for You

Fire Protection is the #121 most popular major in the country with 13,766 degrees and certificates awarded in 2020-2021.

It's not easy to decide which program to enroll in when you have so many options available. With more and more schools offering online options, you could even register for a great program on the other side of the country. On top of that, there are a considerable number of trade schools that offer fast-track entry to many fields.

Along with in-depth profiles of schools and the programs they offer, Course Advisor has created the Most Popular Fire Protection Schools to help you in your search for the best school for you. Our analysis looked at 493 schools in the United States to see which programs were the most popular for students. To create this ranking we looked at how many students graduated from the Fire Protection program at each school on the list.

Check out the fire protection programs at these schools if you want to attend one of the most popular in the United States.

#1

Columbia Southern University

Orange Beach, AL

Our 2023 rankings named Columbia Southern University the most popular school in the United States for fire protection students. Located in the town of Orange Beach, Columbia Southern University is a private for-profit school with a fairly large student population.

After completing their degree, fire protection graduates from Columbia Southern University carry an average student debt load of $15,803.

Full Fire Protection at Columbia Southern University Report

#2

Santa Ana College

Santa Ana, CA

A rank of #2 on this year’s list means Santa Ana College is a great place for fire protection students. SAC is a very large public school located in the city of Santa Ana.

On average, fire protection graduates from SAC take out $13,375 in student loans while working on their degree.

Read full report on Fire Protection at Santa Ana College

#3

Victor Valley College

Victorville, CA

The excellent programs at Victor Valley College helped the school earn the #3 place on this year’s ranking of the best fire protection schools in the United States. Victor Valley College is a moderately-sized public school located in the suburb of Victorville.

Read full report on Fire Protection at Victor Valley College

#4

Rio Hondo College

Whittier, CA

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Rio Hondo College. The school came in at #4 on this year’s Most Popular Fire Protection Schools list. RHCCD is a fairly large public school located in the suburb of Whittier.

Read full report on Fire Protection at Rio Hondo College

#5

Purdue University Global

Indianapolis, IN

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Purdue University Global. The school came in at #5 on this year’s Most Popular Fire Protection Schools list. Located in the city of Indianapolis, Purdue University Global is a public college with a fairly large student population.

Fire Protection majors at Purdue University Global take out an average of $28,650 in student loans while working on their egree.

Read full report on Fire Protection at Purdue University Global

#6

Palomar College

San Marcos, CA

Palomar College landed the #6 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular fire protection programs. Palomar College is a fairly large public school located in the suburb of San Marcos.

Read full report on Fire Protection at Palomar College

Utah Valley University landed the #7 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular fire protection programs. Located in the small city of Orem, UVU is a public college with a fairly large student population.

On average, fire protection graduates from UVU take out $11,441 in student loans while working on their degree.

Read full report on Fire Protection at Utah Valley University

#8

Valencia College

Orlando, FL

Valencia College landed the #8 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular fire protection programs. Located in the city of Orlando, Valencia College is a public college with a very large student population.

Full Fire Protection at Valencia College Report

#9

Clark State Community College

Springfield, OH

With a ranking of #9, Clark State Community College did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for fire protection students. Located in the city of Springfield, Clark State Community College is a public school with a moderately-sized student population.

Full Fire Protection at Clark State Community College Report

#10

Sierra College

Rocklin, CA

Sierra College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular schools for fire protection students. It came in at #10 on the list. Sierra College is a fairly large public school located in the large suburb of Rocklin.

Read full report on Fire Protection at Sierra College

Florida State College at Jacksonville did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular schools for fire protection students. It came in at #10 on the list. FSCJ is a very large public school located in the city of Jacksonville.

Full Fire Protection at Florida State College at Jacksonville Report

#12

Shasta College

Redding, CA

Shasta College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular schools for fire protection students. It came in at #12 on the list. Shasta College is a moderately-sized public school located in the midsize suburb of Redding.

Full Fire Protection at Shasta College Report

Sinclair Community College ranked #13 on this year’s Most Popular Fire Protection Schools list. Sinclair Community College is a fairly large public school located in the midsize city of Dayton.

After completing their degree, fire protection graduates from Sinclair Community College carry an average student debt load of $8,750.

Read More…

#14

Oxnard College

Oxnard, CA

With a ranking of #14, Oxnard College did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for fire protection students. Located in the city of Oxnard, Oxnard College is a public college with a moderately-sized student population.

Read full report on Fire Protection at Oxnard College

#15

Allan Hancock College

Santa Maria, CA

Allan Hancock College ranked #15 on this year’s Most Popular Fire Protection Schools list. Located in the midsize city of Santa Maria, Allan Hancock College is a public school with a moderately-sized student population.

Read full report on Fire Protection at Allan Hancock College

#16

Moreno Valley College

Moreno Valley, CA

Moreno Valley College landed the #16 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular fire protection programs. Located in the large suburb of Moreno Valley, Moreno Valley College is a public school with a moderately-sized student population.

Read full report on Fire Protection at Moreno Valley College

With a ranking of #17, Seminole State College of Florida did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for fire protection students. Seminole State is a fairly large public school located in the small city of Sanford.

Full Fire Protection at Seminole State College of Florida Report

#18

San Antonio College

San Antonio, TX

San Antonio College ranked #18 on this year’s Most Popular Fire Protection Schools list. San Antonio College is a large public school located in the city of San Antonio.

Read full report on Fire Protection at San Antonio College

#19

Santa Rosa Junior College

Santa Rosa, CA

Santa Rosa Junior College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular schools for fire protection students. It came in at #19 on the list. Located in the city of Santa Rosa, SRJC is a public college with a large student population.

Read More…

#20

St Petersburg College

Clearwater, FL

With a ranking of #20, St Petersburg College did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for fire protection students. SPC is a fairly large public school located in the large city of Clearwater.

While working on their degree, fire protection majors at SPC accumulate an average of around $12,867 in student debt.

Full Fire Protection at St Petersburg College Report

#21

Butte College

Oroville, CA

Butte College came in at #21 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Fire Protection Schools ranking. Located in the rural area of Oroville, Butte College is a public college with a medium-sized student population.

Read More…

#22

Southwestern Illinois College

Belleville, IL

Southwestern Illinois College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular schools for fire protection students. It came in at #22 on the list. SWIC is a medium-sized public school located in the large suburb of Belleville.

On average, fire protection graduates from SWIC take out $12,000 in student loans while working on their degree.

Read full report on Fire Protection at Southwestern Illinois College

#23

Waldorf University

Forest City, IA

With a ranking of #23, Waldorf University did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for fire protection students. Waldorf is a small private for-profit school located in the remote town of Forest City.

While working on their degree, fire protection majors at Waldorf accumulate an average of around $18,078 in student debt.

Full Fire Protection at Waldorf University Report

#24

North Central Texas College

Gainesville, TX

With a ranking of #24, North Central Texas College did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for fire protection students. NCTC is a moderately-sized public school located in the distant town of Gainesville.

Read full report on Fire Protection at North Central Texas College

American Public University System did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular schools for fire protection students. It came in at #25 on the list. Located in the fringe town of Charles Town, American Military University is a private for-profit college with a fairly large student population.

After completing their degree, fire protection graduates from American Military University carry an average student debt load of $15,615.

Read More…

#30

Apollo Career Center

Lima, OH
#31

Honolulu Community College

Honolulu, HI
#32

Mt. San Antonio College

Walnut, CA
#33

University of Florida

Gainesville, FL
#33

Oakland Community College

Bloomfield Hills, MI
#36

Lake Technical College

Eustis, FL
#38

Crafton Hills College

Yucaipa, CA
#38

Los Medanos College

Pittsburg, CA
#38

Anna Maria College

Paxton, MA
#42

Daytona State College

Daytona Beach, FL
#45

El Camino College

Torrance, CA
#45

Indian River State College

Fort Pierce, FL
#48

Aims Community College

Greeley, CO
#50

College of the Mainland

Texas City, TX

Additional Award Winners

This list represents the rest of the schools awarded a Most Popular Fire Protection Schools badge. Showing in this list means the school was ranked in the top 15% of the 493 different United States fire protection schools we analyzed.

Rank College Location
51 Southern Illinois University Carbondale Carbondale, IL
51 City College of San Francisco San Francisco, CA
51 Lone Star College System The Woodlands, TX
54 Hillsborough Community College Tampa, FL
54 Manatee Technical College Bradenton, FL
54 Las Positas College Livermore, CA
57 Hutchinson Community College Hutchinson, KS
57 Fresno City College Fresno, CA
59 McHenry County College Crystal Lake, IL
59 First Coast Technical College Saint Augustine, FL
61 Volunteer State Community College Gallatin, TN
62 Hawaii Community College Hilo, HI
63 Waubonsee Community College Sugar Grove, IL
64 William T McFatter Technical College Davie, FL
65 Mahoning County Career and Technical Center Canfield, OH
66 Red Rocks Community College Lakewood, CO
66 Palm Beach State College Lake Worth, FL
68 Weatherford College Weatherford, TX
69 Jefferson Community and Technical College Louisville, KY
70 Yuba College Marysville, CA
71 Suncoast Technical College Sarasota, FL
71 Metropolitan Community College - Kansas City Kansas City, MO
71 University of Florida-Online Gainesville, FL
71 Eastern Kentucky University Richmond, KY

Honorable Mentions

These are some additional schools worth mentioning that are also popular but just didn't quite make the cut to earn our top Most Popular Fire Protection Schools award.

Rank College Location
75 Chaffey College Rancho Cucamonga, CA
75 Elgin Community College Elgin, IL
75 Bates Technical College Tacoma, WA
75 Madison Area Technical College Madison, WI
75 Central New Mexico Community College Albuquerque, NM
80 College of the Canyons Santa Clarita, CA
80 East Los Angeles College Monterey Park, CA
80 Glendale Community College Glendale, AZ
83 Ivy Tech Community College Indianapolis, IN
84 Tallahassee Community College Tallahassee, FL
84 El Paso Community College El Paso, TX
86 Fayetteville State University Fayetteville, NC
86 Modesto Junior College Modesto, CA
86 College of the Sequoias Visalia, CA
89 Coastal Carolina Community College Jacksonville, NC
90 Augusta Technical College Augusta, GA
90 American River College Sacramento, CA
90 Gulf Coast State College Panama City, FL
90 Eastern Florida State College Cocoa, FL
90 Glendale Community College Glendale, CA
90 Monterey Peninsula College Monterey, CA
96 Eastern Oregon University La Grande, OR
96 Del Mar College Corpus Christi, TX
98 Hill College Hillsboro, TX
98 Gateway Community and Technical College Florence, KY
98 Albany Technical College Albany, GA
98 Casper College Casper, WY
98 Owens Community College Perrysburg, OH
98 Southwestern College Chula Vista, CA
98 Great Oaks Career Campuses Cincinnati, OH

Fire Protection by Region

View the Most Popular Fire Protection Schools for a specific region near you.

Region
Southeast
New England
Rocky Mountains
Plains States
Middle Atlantic
Far Western US
Southwest
Great Lakes

One of 4 majors within the area of study, fire protection has other similar majors worth exploring.

Related Major Annual Graduates
Criminal Justice & Corrections 113,121
Homeland Security 7,140
Security Science and Technology 6,888
Other Homeland Security 1,695

Notes and References

*These averages are for the top 25 schools only.

  • The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) serves as the core of the rest of our data about colleges.
  • Some other college data, including much of the graduate earnings data, comes from the U.S. Department of Education’s (College Scorecard).

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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