1. College Success

• COLLG 110 College Success (3 credits)

• Course purpose: A foundational course to explore and affirm a career choice and build upon the skills, knowledge, and resources that will support you at Pierce College and beyond.

2. English Composition I

• ENGL& 101 English Composition I (5 credits)

• Course purpose: Clear and strategic written communication with others is a central feature of those working in the fire service area.  The skills you will learn in ENGL& 101 are foundational for future course work and beyond.

3. Basic Fire Investigation

• FCA 120 Basic Fire Investigation (3 credits)

• Course purpose: Firefighters at all levels are essential in helping to determine the cause and origin of a fire. In this course you will explore a basic study of fire scene investigation procedures.

Action Item: Meet with Advisor

Use your Success Network! In your first quarter, meet with your advisor to revisit your career and transfer path, make adjustments to your goals as needed, and plan for your next steps.

4. Technical Writing for Fire Service

• FCA 132 Technical Writing for Fire Service (3 credits)

• Course purpose: Firefighters routinely write incident reports that are legal documents. This course will focus on the specific skills necessary for fire service report writing.

5. Fire Service Instructor I

• FCA 155 Fire Instructor I (3 credits)

• Course purpose: The fire service maintains intense training requirements and skill maintenance. This is a fundamental responsibility as a fire officer.

6. Public Information Officer

• FCA 157 Public Information Officer (2 credits)

• Course purpose: The public has a desire and legal right to information regarding any specific event. This course is designed to train firefighters how to coordinate and disseminate information released during emergency operations.

7. Tactics I

• FCA 160 Tactics I (2 credits)

• Course purpose: Correct operational tactics are essential for the safety of the firefighter and public.

8. Fire Service and Response to Terrorism

• FCA 173 Fire Service and Response to Terrorism (5 credits)

• Course purpose: Terrorism events often provide a higher risk to responding personnel and the general public. This course will provide you with comprehensive strategic and tactical information pertaining to response and recovery from terrorist attacks.

9. Fire Administration

• FCA 180 Fire Administration (3 credits)

• Course purpose: The fire service administration is uniquely different from other types of similar agencies. In this course you will learn about the relationships and issues in personnel administration within the context of fire related organizations.

10. Fire Office I

• FCA 195 Fire Officer I (4 credits)

• Course purpose: This course includes leadership, supervisory and decision-making practices necessary and expected as an officer in the fire service.

11. Legal Aspects of Fire Service

• FCA 259 Legal Aspects of Fire Service (3 credits)

• Course purpose: Firefighters must understand and comply with laws that regulate emergency services.

12. Basic Incident Command

• FCA 260 Basic Incident Command System/National Incident Management System (2 credits)

• Course purpose: All incidents are managed using the National Incident Command System. This course introduces the firefighter to the incident command system (ICS) and provides the foundation for higher-level ICS training.

Action Item: Apply for Graduation

Way to go! It is time to apply for graduation. Visit the Pierce College Graduation website for details. https://www.pierce.ctc.edu/graduation

13. Hazardous Material On-Scene Incident Commander

• FCA 261 Hazardous Material On-Scene Incident Commander (2 credits)

• Course purpose: A hazardous materials incident poses an increased safety risk to responders and the general public. This course prepares a fire officer to safely and effectively manage hazardous materials incidents.

14. Disaster and Fire Defense Planning

• FCA 262 Disaster and Fire Defense Planning (4 credits)

• Course purpose: You will be introduced to the concepts and principles of community risk assessment, mitigation, response, and recovery.

15. Fire Officer II

• FCA 265 Fire Officer II (4 credits)

• Course purpose: You will be introduced to the critical skills needed for effective management of the administration, prevention, and operations functions in the fire department organizational structure.

16. Negotiation

• FCA 272 Negotiation (3 credits)

• Course purpose: Personnel management and negotiations are essential to effective leadership in the fire service. This course explores the major concepts and theories of the psychology and practice of bargaining and negotiation.

17. Occupational Safety and Health for Fire Service

• FCA 274 Occupational Safety and Health for Fire Service (4 credits)

• Course purpose: The fire service routinely operates in an environment that can be immediately hazardous to life and health. Safety and health is the foundation of all emergency services related training.

18. Advanced Fire Administration

• FCA 280 Advanced Fire Administration (4 credits)

• Course purpose: You will be introduced to the organization and management of fire departments and preparing them to advance into positions as fire and program administrators.

19. Introduction to Weather

• ATMOS 101 Introduction to Weather (5 credits)

• Course purpose: This course is a study of the earth’s atmosphere including the major controls of weather and climate.

20. Introduction to Communication

• CMST& 101 Introduction to Communications (5 credits)

• Course purpose: You will practice the ability to communicate orally which is a necessary skill for success in the fire service.  You will also develop the ability to listen to the needs of others, and the ability to use a variety of communication styles to help motivate and engage others.

21. Business Mathematics

• BTECA 117 Business Mathematics (5 credits)

• Course purpose: This course will provide you with skills to manage budgets, logistics, and related functions.

22. General Psychology

• PSYC& 100 General Psychology (5 credits)

• Course purpose: Emergency Services operations involve working with people with diverse backgrounds and lifestyles  who are in crisis. Responders need a fundamental understanding of human nature and behavior to effectively accomplish their mission.

23. Fire Command Course Recommendation

Choose 14 credits of courses from the list below.

• FCA 137 Introduction to System Design (5 credits)

• Course purpose: This course will provide you with a fundamental understanding of fire protection systems. These systems function to prevent, detect and suppress fires.

• FCA 152 Building Construction (2 credits)

• Course purpose: The course provides Fire Service with an understanding of building construction related to containing the spread of fire and recognizing how various type of construction will affect the risk of a catastrophic collapse during emergency operations.

• FCA 175 Fire Safety Officer (2 credits)

• Course purpose: All emergency operations have a higher risk of injury or death than most other occupations. In all events it is necessary to assign a qualified and experienced officer to serve as the Incident Safety Officer (ISO). This course prepares personnel for certification as an ISO.

• FCA 170 Hazardous Materials Awareness (1 credit)

• Course purpose: This course will provide you with an awareness and recognition of a hazardous materials emergency. The training includes basic materials recognition and evacuation procedures.

• FCA 177 Wildland Urban Interface (3 credits)

• Course purpose: An increasingly complex fire service problem is developments that extend out into wild land areas. This creates an “interface” problem for wildfire protection.

• FCA 205 Testing H2O Systems (3 credits)

• Course purpose: Water supply systems are specifically designed and maintained to provide the essential water flow necessary to suppress major fires. The fire service works collaboratively with the public works departments to test and assure that these systems provide the capability and reliability to meet the needs of the fire service. 

• FCA 255 Fire Instructor II (3 credits)

• Course purpose: The National Fire Academy recognizes a two-step process for developing fire instructors to assure quality of instruction. The Instructor I course (FCA 155) prepares a knowledgeable firefighter to deliver a standardized course that has been prepared. This course, Fire Instructor II, qualifies an Instructor I to modify or develop course outcomes and materials.

• FCA 270 Hazardous Materials Operations (2 credits)

• Course purpose: In this course you will learn  basic operational safety procedures necessary for firefighters to operate in a hazardous materials environment. At this level of training firefighters can only take the very basic measures necessary to contain a hazardous materials spill.

• FCA 285 Fire and Life Safety Educator (3 credits)

• Course purpose: Fire departments recognize that the best method of suppressing fires and mitigating other emergencies is to prevent them from occurring through a robust prevention and education program.

• FCA 295 Fire Officer III (4 credits)

• Course purpose: The course prepares a certified Fire Officer II to advance towards a Chief Fire Officer (CFO) certification (FF III). These credentials prepare fire officers for advanced positions such as Battalion Chief, Assistant Chief, and Fire Chief. 

Total Credits: 93

Program Code: 829