While the education itself is the most important part of obtaining a degree in fire science, the increase in pay or career prospects is a close second. Students want to enroll in programs that will make them high-caliber firemen and women, but they also want schools that lead to careers that pay well. In order to accommodate those desires, we've assembled this list.
We used only the most trusted data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics and the National Center for Education Statistics to create our list of the 90 fire science programs that offer great returns-on-investment. A graduate of any of the colleges and universities below who becomes a full time firefighter will annually earn five times the cost of one year of school.
For a more detailed description of how each school was identified, please read our methodology page.
| Rank | Name | Salary | Tuition | Total Enrollment | City | State |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bunker Hill Community College | $59,885 | $576 | 17,853 | Boston | Massachusetts |
| 2 | Cape Cod Community College | $59,885 | $576 | 6,530 | West Barnstable | Massachusetts |
| 3 | Massasoit Community College | $59,885 | $576 | 11,685 | Brockton | Massachusetts |
| 4 | Middlesex Community College | $59,885 | $576 | 13,267 | Bedford | Massachusetts |
| 5 | College of San Mateo | $69,910 | $624 | 16,105 | San Mateo | California |
| 6 | College of the Sequoias | $69,910 | $728 | 18,665 | Visalia | California |
| 7 | Cisco College | $52,055 | $768 | 6,591 | Cisco | Texas |
| 8 | Antelope Valley College | $69,910 | $780 | 19,052 | Lancaster | California |
| 9 | Butte College | $69,910 | $864 | 17,877 | Oroville | California |
| 10 | Chaffey College | $69,910 | $864 | 25,455 | Rancho Cucamonga | California |
| 11 | College of the Canyons | $69,910 | $864 | 33,263 | Santa Clarita | California |
| 12 | Crafton Hills College | $69,910 | $864 | 8,379 | Yucaipa | California |
| 13 | Fresno City College | $69,910 | $864 | 32,524 | Fresno | California |
| 14 | Las Positas College | $69,910 | $864 | 12,675 | Livermore | California |
| 15 | Merced College | $69,910 | $864 | 15,155 | Merced | California |
| 16 | Mission College | $69,910 | $864 | 16,522 | Santa Clara | California |
| 17 | Modesto Junior College | $69,910 | $864 | 24,009 | Modesto | California |
| 18 | Lake Tahoe Community College | $69,910 | $936 | 5,785 | South Lake Tahoe | California |
| 19 | East Los Angeles College | $69,910 | $958 | 54,962 | Monterey Park | California |
| 20 | Los Angeles Valley College | $69,910 | $958 | 29,543 | Valley Glen | California |
| 21 | Amarillo College | $52,055 | $960 | 15,823 | Amarillo | Texas |
| 22 | Allan Hancock College | $69,910 | $1,008 | 19,552 | Santa Maria | California |
| 23 | Bakersfield College | $69,910 | $1,008 | 27,426 | Bakersfield | California |
| 24 | Cabrillo College | $69,910 | $1,008 | 20,424 | Aptos | California |
| 25 | Long Beach City College | $69,910 | $1,008 | 35,722 | Long Beach | California |
| 26 | Los Medanos College | $69,910 | $1,008 | 14,574 | Pittsburgh | California |
| 27 | Del Mar College | $52,055 | $1,224 | 17,098 | Corpus Christi | Texas |
| 28 | Cochise College | $50,420 | $1,512 | 16,192 | Douglas | Arizona |
| 29 | Eastern Arizona College | $50,420 | $1,600 | 10,426 | Thatcher | Arizona |
| 30 | El Paso Community College | $52,055 | $1,608 | 41,768 | El Paso | Texas |
| 31 | Austin Community College District | $52,055 | $1,635 | 77,953 | Austin | Texas |
| 32 | Arizona Western College | $50,420 | $1,680 | 13,344 | Yuma | Arizona |
| 33 | El Camino Community College District | $69,910 | $1,728 | 35,392 | Torrance | California |
| 34 | College of the Mainland | $52,055 | $1,800 | 6,235 | Texas City | Texas |
| 35 | Glendale Community College | $50,420 | $1,824 | 32,962 | Glendale | Arizona |
| 36 | Mesa Community College | $50,420 | $1,824 | 41,836 | Mesa | Arizona |
| 37 | Collin County Community College District | $52,055 | $1,830 | 41,650 | McKinney | Texas |
| 38 | Hill College | $52,055 | $1,848 | 6,371 | Hillsboro | Texas |
| 39 | Hillsborough Community College | $56,330 | $1,875 | 40,213 | Tampa | Florida |
| 40 | Brevard Community College | $56,330 | $1,892 | 25,283 | Cocoa | Florida |
| 41 | Blinn College | $52,055 | $1,944 | 25,552 | Brenham | Texas |
| 42 | Florida State College at Jacksonville | $56,330 | $1,995 | 49,670 | Jacksonville | Florida |
| 43 | Gulf Coast State College | $56,330 | $2,042 | 10,716 | Panama City | Florida |
| 44 | College of Southern Nevada | $66,310 | $2,078 | 61,662 | Las Vegas | Nevada |
| 45 | Kilgore College | $52,055 | $2,112 | 9,091 | Kilgore | Texas |
| 46 | Houston Community College | $52,055 | $2,160 | 92,869 | Houston | Texas |
| 47 | Angelina College | $52,055 | $2,220 | 8,020 | Lufkin | Texas |
| 48 | Lamar Institute of Technology | $52,055 | $2,256 | 4,120 | Beaumont | Texas |
| 49 | Aims Community College | $58,030 | $2,328 | 8,071 | Greeley | Colorado |
| 50 | Honolulu Community College | $53,060 | $2,328 | 6,519 | Honolulu | Hawaii |
| 51 | Chipola College | $56,330 | $2,365 | 2,963 | Marianna | Florida |
| 52 | Miami Dade College | $56,330 | $2,365 | 99,232 | Miami | Florida |
| 53 | Indian River State College | $56,330 | $2,376 | 26,197 | Fort Pierce | Florida |
| 54 | Coconino Community College | $50,420 | $2,490 | 6,991 | Flagstaff | Arizona |
| 55 | Edison State College | $56,330 | $2,508 | 24,097 | Fort Myers | Florida |
| 56 | Lone Star College System | $52,055 | $2,640 | 86,966 | The Woodlands | Texas |
| 57 | McLennan Community College | $52,055 | $2,736 | 14,610 | Waco | Texas |
| 58 | Daytona State College | $56,330 | $3,074 | 25,231 | Daytona Beach | Florida |
| 59 | Camden County College | $60,150 | $3,150 | 23,052 | Blackwood | New Jersey |
| 60 | Bellevue College | $70,450 | $3,152 | 23,059 | Bellevue | Washington |
| 61 | Monroe Community College | $65,155 | $3,240 | 34,824 | Rochester | New York |
| 62 | Community College of Rhode Island | $50,900 | $3,356 | 24,411 | Warwick | Rhode Island |
| 63 | Everett Community College | $70,450 | $3,451 | 13,768 | Everett | Washington |
| 64 | Chemeketa Community College | $65,780 | $3,465 | 22,782 | Salem | Oregon |
| 65 | Corning Community College | $65,155 | $3,870 | 6,740 | Corning | New York |
| 66 | Delta College | $51,760 | $3,900 | 16,944 | University Center | Michigan |
| 67 | Macomb Community College | $51,760 | $3,968 | 35,631 | Warren | Michigan |
| 68 | Kalamazoo Valley Community College | $51,760 | $4,092 | 17,572 | Kalamazoo | Michigan |
| 69 | Clover Park Technical College | $70,450 | $4,202 | 12,699 | Lakewood | Washington |
| 70 | Lincoln Land Community College | $61,167 | $4,296 | 14,666 | Springfield | Illinois |
| 71 | Lansing Community College | $51,760 | $4,740 | 31,462 | Lansing | Michigan |
| 72 | Bates Technical College | $70,450 | $4,905 | 9,052 | Tacoma | Washington |
| 73 | CUNY John Jay College of Criminal Justice | $65,155 | $5,130 | 18,040 | New York | New York |
| 74 | California State University-Los Angeles | $69,910 | $5,472 | 22,830 | Los Angeles | California |
| 75 | Eastern Oregon University | $65,780 | $5,603 | 6,021 | La Grande | Oregon |
| 76 | Columbia College | $69,910 | $5,679 | 30,588 | Sonora | California |
| 77 | Colorado State University-Fort Collins | $58,030 | $6,307 | 33,712 | Fort Collins | Colorado |
| 78 | College of Lake County | $61,167 | $6,524 | 31,045 | Grayslake | Illinois |
| 79 | Illinois Central College | $61,167 | $6,750 | 19,573 | East Peoria | Illinois |
| 80 | Montgomery College | $56,555 | $6,750 | 37,390 | Rockville | Maryland |
| 81 | County College of Morris | $60,150 | $6,840 | 13,936 | Randolph | New Jersey |
| 82 | Moraine Valley Community College | $61,167 | $7,380 | 31,301 | Palos Hills | Illinois |
| 83 | Joliet Junior College | $61,167 | $7,475 | 31,847 | Joliet | Illinois |
| 84 | McHenry County College | $61,167 | $7,766 | 11,541 | Crystal Lake | Illinois |
| 85 | Elgin Community College | $61,167 | $8,064 | 19,357 | Elgin | Illinois |
| 86 | Lewis and Clark Community College | $61,167 | $8,370 | 12,323 | Godfrey | Illinois |
| 87 | Harper College | $61,167 | $8,628 | 28,292 | Palatine | Illinois |
| 88 | College of DuPage | $61,167 | $9,157 | 48,128 | Glen Ellyn | Illinois |
| 89 | Grand Canyon University | $50,420 | $9,198 | 65,509 | Phoenix | Arizona |
| 90 | Lake Superior State University | $51,760 | $9,264 | 3,099 | Sault Ste Marie | Michigan |