Fire Service Management
Associate in Applied Science
Curriculum code 1262
Course Requirements                   Public Service Web Site

Moraine Valley Community College's Fire Service Management Program prepares you for various careers related to fires and fire prevention.

You will learn about the characteristics and behavior of fire, how to extinguish fires, cope with hazardous materials incidents, and administer emergency medical assistance to injured persons. You also will gain hands-on experience using and maintaining fire-fighting apparatus and equipment, conducting fire inspections, investigating the cause and origin of fires, as well as preparing various fire and inspection reports.

This associate's degree program is intended to lead to employment. If you are considering transferring to a four-year college or university to obtain a bachelor's degree using the courses from this program, make an appointment with an academic advisor to review your options.

Nature of Work—Using appropriate methods and equipment, fire science personnel attack and extinguish fires, cope with hazardous materials incidents, and are familiar with rescue techniques. In addition, they can administer emergency medical assistance to injured persons, maintain fire-fighting apparatus and equipment, conduct fire inspections and investigations into the cause and origin of fires, and are knowledgeable of general building construction and related building codes. They also prepare and submit various fire and inspection reports, prepare and conduct training programs for in-house and outside personnel and supervise firefighters in emergency and non-emergency situations. Fire science personnel may work in urban and suburban areas, airports, chemical plants, other industrial sites, and rural areas like grasslands and forests.

Related Job Titles—Firefighter, fire officer, fire prevention personnel, fire investigator, public safety personnel, industrial firefighter, industrial loss prevention personnel, insurance personnel and military firefighter

Transfer Option—Southern Illinois University at Carbondale (Capstone)—The program is presented off-campus in River Grove, IL. Western Illinois University—Open Learning Fire Science Program. See academic advisor for more information.

Employment Outlook—Employment of firefighters is expected to grow faster than the average for all occupations through 2012 as fire departments continue to compete with other public safety providers for funding. Most job growth will occur as volunteer firefighting positions are converted to paid positions. In addition to job growth, openings are expected to result from the need to replace firefighters who retire, stop working for other reasons, or transfer to other occupations.

Median hourly earnings of fire fighters were $18.43 in May 2004. The middle 50 percent earned between $13.65 and $24.14. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $9.71, and the highest 10 percent earned more than $29.21. Median hourly earnings were $18.78 in local government, $17.34 in the federal government, and $14.94 in state government.

Median annual earnings of first-line supervisors/managers of fire-fighting and prevention workers were $58,920 in May 2004. The middle 50 percent earned between $46,880 and $72,600. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $36,800, and the highest 10 percent earned more than $90,860. First-line supervisors/managers of fire-fighting and prevention workers employed in local government earned about $60,800 a year. Resource: Bureau of Labor Statistics. For job and internship listings and job search assistance, contact the Job Placement Center in the Center for Contemporary Technology, T904, (708) 974-5737, www.morainevalley.edu/jpc.