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2025 Best Fire Protection Schools in California

12 Colleges in California
3,802 Fire Protection Degrees Awarded
$57,073 Avg Early-Career Salary
A degree in fire protection is more popular than many other degrees. In fact, it ranks #118 out of 395 on popularity of all such degrees in the nation. As a result, there are many college that offer the degree, making your choice of school a hard one.

In 2025, College Factual analyzed 12 schools in order to identify the top ones for its Best Fire Protection Schools in California ranking. Combined, these schools handed out 3,802 degrees in fire protection to qualified students.

Jump to one of the following sections: * Degree-Level Rankings

Choosing a Great Fire Protection School

Best Fire Protection Schools in California The fire protection program you select can have a big impact on your future. That's why we developed our collection of Best Schools for Fire Protection rankings. For our Best Overall Fire Protection School rankings, we roll up the results of our degree-level rankings, weighted by the number of degrees awarded at that level.

You may want to choose one of the degree levels below to find the schools of most interest to you.

Fire Protection Rankings by Degree Level

Associate Degrees in Fire Protection
Bachelor's Degrees in Fire Protection

Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we've developed a number of rankings, including this Best Fire Protection Schools in California list, to help you choose the best school for you. If you'd like to restrict your choices to just one part of the country, you can filter this list by location.

In addition to our rankings, you can take two colleges and compare them based on the criteria that matters most to you in our unique tool, College Combat. Test it out when you get a chance! You may also want to bookmark the link and share it with others who are trying to make the college decision.

If you want to learn more about how we derive our rankings, see College Factual's Methodology.

Best Schools for Fire Protection in California

The schools below may not offer all types of fire protection degrees so you may want to filter by degree level first. However, they are great for the degree levels they do offer.

10 Top California Schools in Fire Protection

1
Butte College crest
Butte College
Oroville, CA
Associate Degree Highest Degree Type
21st Most Popular In CA
103 Fire Protection Degrees Awarded

Butte College is one of the finest schools in the country for getting a degree in fire protection. Located in the rural area of Oroville, Butte College is a public college with a large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #475 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means Butte College is a great college overall.

There were approximately 103 fire protection students who graduated with this degree at Butte College in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in fire protection from Butte College

2
Associate Degree Highest Degree Type
12th Most Popular In CA
110 Fire Protection Degrees Awarded

Santa Rosa Junior College is one of the finest schools in the United States for getting a degree in fire protection. SRJC is a fairly large public college located in the medium-sized city of Santa Rosa. A Best Colleges rank of #121 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means SRJC is a great college overall.

There were approximately 110 fire protection students who graduated with this degree at SRJC in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in fire protection from Santa Rosa Junior College

3
Moreno Valley College crest
Moreno Valley College
Moreno Valley, CA
Associate Degree Highest Degree Type
7th Most Popular In CA
166 Fire Protection Degrees Awarded

Any student pursuing a degree in fire protection has to check out Moreno Valley College. Located in the large suburb of Moreno Valley, Moreno Valley College is a public college with a fairly large student population. This college ranks 146th out of 161 schools for overall quality in the state of California.

There were roughly 166 fire protection students who graduated with this degree at Moreno Valley College in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in fire protection from Moreno Valley College

4
Associate Degree Highest Degree Type
26th Most Popular In CA
57 Fire Protection Degrees Awarded

Modesto Junior College is one of the finest schools in the country for getting a degree in fire protection. MJC is a fairly large public college located in the city of Modesto. A Best Colleges rank of #230 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means MJC is a great college overall.

There were approximately 57 fire protection students who graduated with this degree at MJC in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in fire protection from Modesto Junior College

5
Victor Valley College crest
Victor Valley College
Victorville, CA
Associate Degree Highest Degree Type
35th Most Popular In CA
421 Fire Protection Degrees Awarded

Located in the suburb of Victorville, Victor Valley College is a public college with a large student population. This college ranks 103rd out of 161 colleges for overall quality in the state of California.

There were approximately 421 fire protection students who graduated with this degree at Victor Valley College in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in fire protection from Victor Valley College

6
Yuba College crest
Yuba College
Marysville, CA
Associate Degree Highest Degree Type
39th Most Popular In CA
53 Fire Protection Degrees Awarded

Yuba College is a medium-sized public college located in the midsize suburb of Marysville. A Best Colleges rank of #715 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means Yuba College is a great college overall.

There were about 53 fire protection students who graduated with this degree at Yuba College in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in fire protection from Yuba College

7
SAC crest
Santa Ana College
Santa Ana, CA
Associate Degree Highest Degree Type
378 Fire Protection Degrees Awarded
$51,721 Median Starting Salary

Located in the large city of Santa Ana, SAC is a public college with a fairly large student population. This college ranks 109th out of 161 colleges for overall quality in the state of California.

There were approximately 378 fire protection students who graduated with this degree at SAC in the most recent year we have data available. Graduates who receive their degree from the fire protection program make around $51,721 in their early career salary.

More information about a degree in fire protection from Santa Ana College

8
Associate Degree Highest Degree Type
21st Most Popular In CA
79 Fire Protection Degrees Awarded

Fresno City College is a very large public college located in the city of Fresno. A Best Colleges rank of #793 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means Fresno City College is a great college overall.

There were roughly 79 fire protection students who graduated with this degree at Fresno City College in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in fire protection from Fresno City College

9
East Los Angeles College crest
East Los Angeles College
Monterey Park, CA
Associate Degree Highest Degree Type
23rd Most Popular In CA
149 Fire Protection Degrees Awarded

Located in the large suburb of Monterey Park, East Los Angeles College is a public college with a very large student population. This college ranks 121st out of 161 colleges for overall quality in the state of California.

There were approximately 149 fire protection students who graduated with this degree at East Los Angeles College in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in fire protection from East Los Angeles College

10
Associate Degree Highest Degree Type
31st Most Popular In CA

Located in the large suburb of Lancaster, Antelope Valley College is a public college with a large student population. This college ranks 147th out of 161 colleges for overall quality in the state of California.

There were roughly 13 fire protection students who graduated with this degree at Antelope Valley College in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in fire protection from Antelope Valley College

Best Fire Protection Colleges in the Far Western US Region

Explore all the Best Fire Protection Colleges in the Far Western US Area or other specific states within that region.

State Colleges Degrees Awarded
Washington 300 94
Oregon 266 115
Nevada 192 35
Hawaii 164 72
Alaska 119 16

View All Rankings >

Fire Protection is one of 4 different types of Homeland Security, Law Enforcement & Firefighting programs to choose from.

Fire Protection Focus Areas

Major Annual Graduates
Fire Prevention & Safety Technology/Technician 2,586
Fire Science 1,139
Fire Services Administration 32
Other Fire Protection 31
Wildl&/Forest Firefighting & Investigation 14

View All Fire Protection Focus Areas >

Related Major Annual Graduates
Criminal Justice & Corrections 15,936
Security Science and Technology 501
Homeland Security 179
Other Homeland Security 29

View All Fire Protection Related Majors >

Notes and References

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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