As a leader in fire science for more than 40 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.
This program is also available on campus
Learn moreFire Protection Engineering Info Session
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Admissions Guidelines for Master’s in Fire Protection Engineering Online
Applicants to the master’s in fire protection engineering online must have a bachelor of science in engineering, engineering technology, or the physical sciences. Applicants must have already taken courses in heat transfer, fluid mechanics, thermodynamics, and calculus through differential equations. Those with degrees in engineering technology or the physical sciences may be required to take selected undergraduate courses to round out their backgrounds.
For specific application requirements, visit our admissions for online programs page.
If you do not have a bachelor's degree, please view our list of undergraduate programs.
- W. Lee Watkins
- Fire Protection Engineer
- InSynergy Engineering based out of Honolulu, Hawaii
- Alexandar A. Popov
- Project Engineer
- Building Materials and Systems, UL LL
Curriculum
Program Requirements
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.
Courses
The following 3-credit Fire Protection Engineering courses are offered online:”
FP 520. Fire Modeling
FP 521. Fire Dynamics
FP 553. Fire Protection Systems
FP 554. Advanced Fire Suppression
FP 555. Detection, Alarm and Smoke Control
FP 570. Building Fire Safety I
FP 571. Performance-Based Design
FP 572. Failure Analysis
FP 573. Industrial Fire Protection
FP 575. Explosion Protection
FP 580. People in Fires
FP 580. Complex Decision Making
FP 580. Combustion
FP 580. Forensic Techniques
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
To find the next offering of online Fire Protection Engineering courses, visit the Registrar’s site.
To view a course description, visit the Graduate Catalog.
Subject to change based on availability.
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.
Explore WPI’s Graduate Certificates in FPE
If you’re interested in sharpening your skills in the fire protection engineering, a graduate certificate may be for you. Our fire protection engineering graduate certificate can help bridge the next steps to gain the training and expertise to advance your career in fire protection engineering.
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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Albert Simeoni, Fire Protection Engineering Department Head, Receives Prestigious International Research Award
Simeoni is being honored for “his eminent achievement in the advancement of the science and technology by connecting wildland fire science and fire safety science to better address wildland fire threats as a component of fire protection engineering practice.
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.