This degree is also offered on campus.
Learn more
As a leader in fire science for more than 30 years, WPI gives fire protection engineers the knowledge, skills, and hands-on experience to help make the world a safer place. The master’s in fire protection engineering online program is a part-time, flexible program that allows you to explore advanced topics in fire protection and safety and customize a program around your professional expertise and your career and lifestyle goals. Students will work with a faculty advisor to develop a customized and relevant plan of study. A thesis is not required for the fire protection engineering degree online.
WPI also offers an online graduate certificate in Fire Protection Engineering. Our fire protection certificate introduces engineers to innovation and research as it relates to the fire science field. Prefer to study on-campus? Our on-campus graduate certificate in fire protection engineering offer the same rigorous course content that enables students to learn about fire dynamics and computational modeling.
Courses for Online Fire Science Master’s Degree
Requirements for MS Online Fire Protection Engineering Degree
10 courses, 30 credit hours. You will work with a faculty advisor to develop a customized and relevant plan of study selected from the courses below. To complete credit hours for the online fire protection engineering degree, courses must be taken in the following areas:
- Core courses* (3 courses required, 9 credit hours)
- Integration courses** (1 course required, 3 credit hours)
- Elective courses (6 courses required, 18 credit hours)
With your advisor’s approval, you may take up to 3 elective courses (9 elective credits) from other WPI graduate departments, either on campus or online.
Thesis option: Currently, WPI’s online graduate programs do not offer a thesis option, as theses cannot be completed online. If you wish to pursue a thesis on campus, it is the student’s responsibility to find an advisor. Please note that depending on the project’s subject and timeframe, there might not be a faculty member willing or able to advise.
View academic term start dates for online fire protection courses.
Course Schedule
FALL TERM |
SPRING TERM |
SUMMER TERM |
ADDITIONAL ELECTIVES
View current online course schedule for CE electives. View math and management courses that offered online. We do not offer these programs. |
Software used in the online fire protection engineering degree program: Decision Tools Suite of programs, Fire Dynamics Simulator (FDS), NIST – Fire on the Web, CONTAM, PyroSim, EVACMOD.net, CFAST, Pathfinder, AutoSPRINK, AFSS Fire Research Engine
Course offerings are subject to change. If you are interested in enrolling, please contact us for the most up-to-date information.
Prerequisites for Master’s in Fire Protection Engineering Online
Admissions Guidelines for Master’s in Fire Protection Engineering Online
Applicants to the master’s in fire protection engineering online should have a bachelor of science in engineering, engineering technology, or the physical sciences. Those with degrees in engineering technology or the physical sciences may be required to take selected undergraduate courses to round out their backgrounds.
Applicants should have already taken courses in heat transfer, fluid mechanics, thermodynamics, and calculus through differential equations.
WPI's MS in Fire Protection Engineering Degree On-Campus
If you’re interested in contributing to making the world a safer place by enforcing necessary fire safety principles, earning a fire protection engineering degree is the path for you. Maybe you prefer to interact and learn in-person? Our on-campus master’s in fire protection engineering provides students the flexibility to learn part-time or full-time in the classroom and hands-on in the fire science lab.
Earn a PhD in Fire Protection
Learn how to make advances in fire science alongside our expert faculty with our PhD in fire protection. This program will explore fire safety, detection, analysis, and more. Be on the forefront of groundbreaking fire research here at WPI.
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What Can You Do With a Fire Protection Engineering Master’s?
Fire protection engineering graduates are in high-demand and find career opportunities across a range of industries and organizations, including fire protection equipment manufacturers, government, insurance, research laboratories, professional societies, fire departments, municipalities, and more.