by our College Data Analytics Team
Students have lots of options to chooose from today when trying to decide which college to attend. Our mission at College Factual is to arm you with as much information as we can to help you make that decision. Our “Most Well Attended Fire Protection Major for a Bachelor’s” ranking is one tool we have developed to help in this regard.
In 2020-2021, 13,766 people earned their degree in fire protection, making the major the 118th most popular in the United States. In 2019-2020, fire protection graduates who were awarded their degree in 2017-2019, earned an average of $53,963 and had an average of $19,479 in loans still to pay off.
At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 1,461 fire protection graduates with average earnings and debt of $39,682 and $26,217 respectively.
This year’s “Most Well Attended Fire Protection Major for a Bachelor’s” ranking analyzed 44 colleges that offered a degree in fire protection. To top this list, a school must have a successful fire protection program that graduates more students in the field than other colleges that offer the same major.
See our ranking methodology to learn more.
Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we’ve developed the “Most Well Attended Fire Protection Major for a Bachelor’s” ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision.
In addition to College Factual’s rankings, you may want to take a look at College Combat, our unique tool that lets you pit your favorite schools head-to-head and compare how they rate on factors that most interest you. When you have some time, check it out - you may want to bookmark the link so you don’t forget it.
The colleges and universities below are the best for bachelor’s degree fire protection students.
Out of the 44 schools in the Most Well Attended Fire Protection Major for a Bachelor’s that were part of this year’s ranking, Columbia Southern University landed the #1 spot on the list. This fairly large school is located in Orange Beach, Alabama, and it awarded 527 bachelors’s fire protection degrees in 2020-2021.
Read more about Fire Protection at Columbia Southern University
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Purdue University Global. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Most Well Attended Fire Protection Major for a Bachelor’s list. Purdue University Global is a public institution located in Indianapolis, Indiana. The school has a large population, and it awarded 112 bachelors’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Read full report on Fire Protection at Purdue University Global
Out of the 44 schools in the Most Well Attended Fire Protection Major for a Bachelor’s that were part of this year’s ranking, Anna Maria College landed the #3 spot on the list. This small school is located in Paxton, Massachusetts, and it awarded 74 bachelors’s fire protection degrees in 2020-2021.
Out of the 44 schools in the Most Well Attended Fire Protection Major for a Bachelor’s that were part of this year’s ranking, Utah Valley University landed the #4 spot on the list. Located in Orem, Utah, this large public school awarded 71 degrees to qualified bachelors’s fire protection students in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 4.4%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Fire Protection at Utah Valley University
Out of the 44 schools in the Most Well Attended Fire Protection Major for a Bachelor’s that were part of this year’s ranking, Waldorf University landed the #5 spot on the list. Waldorf is a small private for-profit school situated in Forest City, Iowa. It awarded 70 bachelors’s fire protection degrees in 2020-2021.
With a ranking of #6, University of Florida-Online did quite well on the 2023 Most Well Attended Fire Protection Major for a Bachelor’s list. UF Online is located in Gainesville, Florida and, has a medium-sized student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 50 bachelors’s fire protection degrees to qualified students.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 1.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Fire Protection at University of Florida-Online
Eastern Kentucky University landed the #6 spot on the 2023 Most Well Attended Fire Protection Major for a Bachelor’s ranking. Eastern is a public institution located in Richmond, Kentucky. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 50 bachelors’s degrees in 2020-2021.
With a ranking of #8, Fayetteville State University did quite well on the 2023 Most Well Attended Fire Protection Major for a Bachelor’s list. Fayetteville State University is a medium-sized school located in Fayetteville, North Carolina that handed out 44 bachelors’s fire protection degrees in 2020-2021.
Read more about Fire Protection at Fayetteville State University
Southern Illinois University Carbondale ranked #8 on this year’s Most Well Attended Fire Protection Major for a Bachelor’s list. SIUC is a public institution located in Carbondale, Illinois. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 44 bachelors’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Eastern Oregon University did quite well in the 2023 Most Well Attended Fire Protection Major for a Bachelor’s ranking, coming in at #10. Located in La Grande, Oregon, this small public school awarded 39 degrees to qualified bachelors’s fire protection students in 2020-2021.
Read more about Fire Protection at Eastern Oregon University
American Public University System came in at #11 in this year’s edition of the Most Well Attended Fire Protection Major for a Bachelor’s ranking. Charles Town, West Virginia is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The private for-profit school handed out bachelors’s fire protection degrees to 37 students in 2020-2021.
Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 98%.
Read more about Fire Protection at American Military University
California State University - Los Angeles landed the #12 spot on the 2023 Most Well Attended Fire Protection Major for a Bachelor’s ranking. California State University - Los Angeles is a large public school situated in Los Angeles, California. It awarded 33 bachelors’s fire protection degrees in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 3.6%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
New Jersey City University landed the #13 spot on the 2023 Most Well Attended Fire Protection Major for a Bachelor’s ranking. This medium-sized school is located in Jersey City, New Jersey, and it awarded 25 bachelors’s fire protection degrees in 2020-2021.
Read more about Fire Protection at New Jersey City University
Liberty University did quite well in the 2023 Most Well Attended Fire Protection Major for a Bachelor’s ranking, coming in at #13. Liberty University is a large private not-for-profit school situated in Lynchburg, Virginia. It awarded 25 bachelors’s fire protection degrees in 2020-2021.
With a ranking of #15, John Jay College of Criminal Justice did quite well on the 2023 Most Well Attended Fire Protection Major for a Bachelor’s list. John Jay College of Criminal Justice is a fairly large school located in New York, New York that handed out 24 bachelors’s fire protection degrees in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 4.2%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
University of New Haven landed the #16 spot on the 2023 Most Well Attended Fire Protection Major for a Bachelor’s ranking. University of New Haven is a medium-sized school located in West Haven, Connecticut that handed out 22 bachelors’s fire protection degrees in 2020-2021.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 3.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Bowling Green State University - Main Campus ranked #17 on this year’s Most Well Attended Fire Protection Major for a Bachelor’s list. BGSU is located in Bowling Green, Ohio and, has a fairly large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 21 bachelors’s fire protection degrees to qualified students.
California State University - San Marcos ranked #18 on this year’s Most Well Attended Fire Protection Major for a Bachelor’s list. Located in San Marcos, California, this fairly large public school handed out 18 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s fire protection students in 2020-2021.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.3%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
With a ranking of #18, Metropolitan State University of Denver did quite well on the 2023 Most Well Attended Fire Protection Major for a Bachelor’s list. MSU Denver is a fairly large school located in Denver, Colorado that handed out 18 bachelors’s fire protection degrees in 2020-2021.
With a ranking of #18, Salem State University did quite well on the 2023 Most Well Attended Fire Protection Major for a Bachelor’s list. Salem State is a medium-sized public school situated in Salem, Massachusetts. It awarded 18 bachelors’s fire protection degrees in 2020-2021.
Western Illinois University came in at #18 in this year’s edition of the Most Well Attended Fire Protection Major for a Bachelor’s ranking. Located in Macomb, Illinois, this medium-sized public school handed out 18 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s fire protection students in 2020-2021.
Read more about Fire Protection at Western Illinois University
Lake Superior State University came in at #22 in this year’s edition of the Most Well Attended Fire Protection Major for a Bachelor’s ranking. Lake Superior State University is a small public school situated in Sault Ste Marie, Michigan. It awarded 16 bachelors’s fire protection degrees in 2020-2021.
Read more about Fire Protection at Lake Superior State University
Colorado State University - Fort Collins came in at #22 in this year’s edition of the Most Well Attended Fire Protection Major for a Bachelor’s ranking. Located in Fort Collins, Colorado, this large public school awarded 16 diplomas to qualified bachelors’s fire protection students in 2020-2021.
With a freshman retention rate of 85%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 2.6%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Methodist University landed the #22 spot on the 2023 Most Well Attended Fire Protection Major for a Bachelor’s ranking. Methodist is a small school located in Fayetteville, North Carolina that handed out 16 bachelors’s fire protection degrees in 2020-2021.
The impressive undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools.
University of Cincinnati - Main Campus came in at #25 in this year’s edition of the Most Well Attended Fire Protection Major for a Bachelor’s ranking. This large school is located in Cincinnati, Ohio, and it awarded 14 bachelors’s fire protection degrees in 2020-2021.
With a freshman retention rate of 88%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 4.7% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.
Read more about Fire Protection at University of Cincinnati - Main Campus
Read more about our data sources and methodologies
