Fire Protection: is this undergraduate certificate or diploma worth it?
National picture across 38 reporting college programs.
Personal baseline needed
$61,737 in median year-4 earnings
A credible return for this credential must start with what the student would otherwise earn. The federal data does not provide that personal baseline.
$61,737Median year-4 earnings
$7,009Average institution net-price context
$9,557Median federal debt
Observed national outcomes
$61,737Median reported earnings · year 4
$58,230Average reported earnings · year 5
$9,557Median federal debt
73thYear-4 earnings percentile at this credential
38Reporting programs
37With year-4 earnings
The same field can produce a different equation.
Keep the federal field fixed and compare observed outcomes at every reportable credential level. These are separate graduate cohorts—not a promise that more schooling causes the difference.
CURRENT VIEW
Undergraduate Certificate or Diploma
- Year-4 earnings
- $61,737
- Federal debt
- $9,557
- Reporting programs
- 38
Associate's Degree
- Year-4 earnings
- $73,375
- Federal debt
- $11,250
- Reporting programs
- 27
Bachelor's Degree
- Year-4 earnings
- $87,428
- Federal debt
- $22,723
- Reporting programs
- 21
Master's Degree
- Year-4 earnings
- $74,656
- Federal debt
- Not available
- Reporting programs
- 1
Non-Credential Program (Preparatory Coursework/Teacher Certification)
- Year-4 earnings
- $54,917
- Federal debt
- Not available
- Reporting programs
- 3
Where the middle half of programs lands
Year‑4 earnings differ by college. This band shows the 25th percentile, national median and 75th percentile among reporting programs.
Median
25th percentile$56,042National median$61,73775th percentile$68,944
37 programs report year‑4 earnings.See the spread, not just the national number.
1Southwestern Illinois College$82,3432Fresno City College$81,9403Moreno Valley College$77,9234Aims Community College$77,1275Florida State College at Jacksonville$72,8236Sinclair Community College$70,1947Shasta College$70,1198St Petersburg College$69,8649Hillsborough College$69,09010Santa Ana College$68,944Observed year-4 earnings · top displayed records are not a universal ranking
Related occupations
Official CIP–SOC links add career context without claiming that every graduate enters the same job.
First-Line Supervisors of Firefighting and Prevention WorkersSOC 33-1021 · 5 crosswalk linksFirefightersSOC 33-2011 · 4 crosswalk linksFire Inspectors and InvestigatorsSOC 33-2021 · 3 crosswalk linksForest Fire Inspectors and Prevention SpecialistsSOC 33-2022 · 2 crosswalk linksCareer/Technical Education Teachers, PostsecondarySOC 25-1194 · 1 crosswalk linksManagers, All OtherSOC 11-9199 · 1 crosswalk linksNO MATCHSOC 99-9999 · 1 crosswalk links
Same degree, different outcomes
Compare reported outcomes using the same federal field and credential. Automated ROI is withheld when an exact program price or personal earnings baseline is required.
| # | College | Location | Earnings, year 4 | Federal debt | ROI status | Cost context |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Southwestern Illinois CollegeUndergraduate Certificate or Diploma | Belleville, IL | $82,343 | $12,750 | Baseline needed | $10,427 |
| 2 | Fresno City CollegeUndergraduate Certificate or Diploma | Fresno, CA | $81,940 | Not available | Baseline needed | $8,069 |
| 3 | Moreno Valley CollegeUndergraduate Certificate or Diploma | Moreno Valley, CA | $77,923 | Not available | Baseline needed | $6,483 |
| 4 | Aims Community CollegeUndergraduate Certificate or Diploma | Greeley, CO | $77,127 | $9,750 | Baseline needed | $11,463 |
| 5 | Florida State College at JacksonvilleUndergraduate Certificate or Diploma | Jacksonville, FL | $72,823 | Not available | Baseline needed | $4,128 |
| 6 | Sinclair Community CollegeUndergraduate Certificate or Diploma | Dayton, OH | $70,194 | $10,950 | Baseline needed | $5,992 |
| 7 | Shasta CollegeUndergraduate Certificate or Diploma | Redding, CA | $70,119 | Not available | Baseline needed | $2,878 |
| 8 | St Petersburg CollegeUndergraduate Certificate or Diploma | St. Petersburg, FL | $69,864 | $9,557 | Baseline needed | $1,471 |
| 9 | Hillsborough CollegeUndergraduate Certificate or Diploma | Tampa, FL | $69,090 | $14,735 | Baseline needed | $3,861 |
| 10 | Santa Ana CollegeUndergraduate Certificate or Diploma | Santa Ana, CA | $68,944 | $15,000 | Baseline needed | $3,133 |
| 11 | Lamar Institute of TechnologyUndergraduate Certificate or Diploma | Beaumont, TX | $68,097 | Not available | Baseline needed | $13,866 |
| 12 | McHenry County CollegeUndergraduate Certificate or Diploma | Crystal Lake, IL | $67,833 | Not available | Baseline needed | $7,042 |
| 13 | Butte CollegeUndergraduate Certificate or Diploma | Oroville, CA | $67,238 | Not available | Baseline needed | $5,520 |
| 14 | Palm Beach State CollegeUndergraduate Certificate or Diploma | Lake Worth, FL | $66,689 | $18,971 | Baseline needed | $9,182 |
| 15 | First Coast Technical CollegeUndergraduate Certificate or Diploma | Saint Augustine, FL | $66,303 | Not available | Baseline needed | $9,577 |
| 16 | Austin Community College DistrictUndergraduate Certificate or Diploma | Austin, TX | $64,664 | $11,375 | Baseline needed | $6,390 |
| 17 | Indian River State CollegeUndergraduate Certificate or Diploma | Fort Pierce, FL | $62,176 | $5,500 | Baseline needed | $3,815 |
| 18 | Oakland Community CollegeUndergraduate Certificate or Diploma | Auburn Hills, MI | $61,752 | Not available | Baseline needed | $5,777 |
| 19 | Daytona State CollegeUndergraduate Certificate or Diploma | Daytona Beach, FL | $61,737 | $6,945 | Baseline needed | $7,177 |
| 20 | Navarro CollegeUndergraduate Certificate or Diploma | Corsicana, TX | $59,955 | $6,000 | Baseline needed | $14,820 |
| 21 | North Central Texas CollegeUndergraduate Certificate or Diploma | Gainesville, TX | $59,766 | Not available | Baseline needed | $6,587 |
| 22 | Marion Technical CollegeUndergraduate Certificate or Diploma | Ocala, FL | $58,401 | Not available | Baseline needed | $8,831 |
| 23 | Pueblo Community CollegeUndergraduate Certificate or Diploma | Pueblo, CO | $58,358 | Not available | Baseline needed | $12,045 |
| 24 | Hill CollegeUndergraduate Certificate or Diploma | Hillsboro, TX | $58,234 | Not available | Baseline needed | $7,577 |
| 25 | Eastern Oklahoma County Technology CenterUndergraduate Certificate or Diploma | Choctaw, OK | $57,453 | Not available | Baseline needed | $6,904 |
| 26 | Pima Community CollegeUndergraduate Certificate or Diploma | Tucson, AZ | $56,270 | Not available | Baseline needed | $3,405 |
| 27 | Houston City CollegeUndergraduate Certificate or Diploma | Houston, TX | $56,144 | Not available | Baseline needed | $5,737 |
| 28 | Metropolitan Community College-Kansas CityUndergraduate Certificate or Diploma | Kansas City, MO | $56,042 | $8,750 | Baseline needed | $8,398 |
| 29 | Great Plains Technology CenterUndergraduate Certificate or Diploma | Lawton, OK | $55,733 | Not available | Baseline needed | $7,128 |
| 30 | Eastern Florida State CollegeUndergraduate Certificate or Diploma | Melbourne, FL | $55,414 | Not available | Baseline needed | $6,440 |
| 31 | McLennan Community CollegeUndergraduate Certificate or Diploma | Waco, TX | $55,259 | $5,500 | Baseline needed | $5,051 |
| 32 | Modesto Junior CollegeUndergraduate Certificate or Diploma | Modesto, CA | $53,962 | Not available | Baseline needed | $2,818 |
| 33 | Great Oaks Career CampusesUndergraduate Certificate or Diploma | Cincinnati, OH | $51,923 | $8,000 | Baseline needed | $12,037 |
| 34 | Mahoning County Career and Technical CenterUndergraduate Certificate or Diploma | Canfield, OH | $51,914 | Not available | Baseline needed | Not available |
| 35 | Western Iowa Tech Community CollegeUndergraduate Certificate or Diploma | Sioux City, IA | $49,177 | Not available | Baseline needed | $8,770 |
| 36 | South Texas CollegeUndergraduate Certificate or Diploma | McAllen, TX | $43,838 | Not available | Baseline needed | $1,751 |
| 37 | Passaic County Community CollegeUndergraduate Certificate or Diploma | Paterson, NJ | $37,203 | Not available | Baseline needed | $7,761 |
| 38 | Butler Technology and Career Development SchoolsUndergraduate Certificate or Diploma | Monroe, OH | Not available | $6,607 | Baseline needed | Not available |
This page keeps the field and credential level fixed. Federal categories can still combine multiple catalog programs or concentrations. Automated ROI is limited to associate and bachelor’s degrees because institution-wide annual net price is not a reliable proxy for short certificate prices. ROI is an illustrative scenario, not a federal determination.