Fire science programmes cover fire behaviour and suppression, building construction and codes, hazardous materials, rescue technique, incident command and fire prevention. In Florida the field runs on a state certification system rather than on degrees, and the academy is the credential that gets you hired.
The degrees this program covers
36 Florida public institutions and 1,955 credentials in the 2023 federal award year — and the shape is even more certificate-weighted than criminal justice: 1,714 short certificates against 156 associate degrees and 43 bachelor's. ⚠⚠ That is the Minimum Standards academy, and it is what Florida requires to be certified as a firefighter. The degree is not a substitute and is not required to be hired. ⚠⚠⚠ What the degree is for is PROMOTION — lieutenant, captain, battalion chief, fire marshal and inspector roles increasingly expect an associate or bachelor's, and departments often pay for it once you are employed. ⚠ The other credential that matters far more than a degree is EMS: most Florida departments hire dual-certified Firefighter/EMTs or Firefighter/Paramedics, several pay for the paramedic programme, and at least one pays a five-figure bonus for arriving with both.
Careers this program leads to
Each one sets out the courses along the way, the licence or certification at the end,
and the sources behind it.
Neighbouring fields that share much of the same coursework, and often the same employers.
⚠ Read these before you commit to a major — which doors a neighbouring degree
keeps open is the part no catalog tells you, and it is far cheaper to change now than later.
36 institutions awarded a credential in this field in 2023,
at these levels: Associate, Bachelor's, Certificate (1-2 years), Certificate (12 weeks-1 year), Certificate (2-4 years), Master's, Postbaccalaureate certificate.
A school appears here if it awards anything in the field, however limited
its offering — a technical college teaching only practical nursing has a nursing
program. Listed alphabetically, not ranked.
Source: federal IPEDS completions data for 2023, first majors only —
the most recent year published. ⚠ It records what was awarded, which is
strong evidence of what is offered, but a program launched since 2023
will not appear here. Check the institution’s own catalog before applying.
Updated 21 September 2026.
⚠ Program pages describe a field of study, not one school’s degree — always
read the catalog of the institution you are applying to.