Articulated Credits from Approved Florida Bureau of Fire Standards and Training Certifications (36 Credits Required)
A student must earn 36 credits from the program’s core fire-related curriculum. The articulated core credits range from 24 to 36 credits, depending on the option selected in Chart A or B. The options with less than 36 credits require the student to select from a list of approved electives to make up the difference. Polk State College does not provide direct instruction for any fire science courses (i.e., those with the FFP, BFST, or ATPC prefix). These fire science courses can be taken from a variety of sources, including the Ridge Technical College in Winter Haven.
Fire science courses are only articulated into Polk State credits if the individual attains the Florida Bureau of Fire Standards and Training Certifications (i.e., Fire Officer I (new version), Fire Officer I (old version), Fire Officer II, Fire Safety Inspector I, Fire Safety Inspector II, and Investigator (new version) or Investigator I (old version)). Information about these certifications is available at the Florida Bureau of Fire Standards and Training website (http://www.myfloridacfo.com/Division/SFM/BFST).
State certifications are verified by Pearson Vue or a similarly approved third-party testing service; therefore, no individual courses are accepted by transcript. The student must bring the originally issued state certification (as listed above) to the Winter Haven Campus Administration Building (WAD). The certification is copied and placed into the student’s record, and the original certification is returned to the student. Articulation credit is provided at no cost to the student.
Note: In 2022, the Florida Bureau of Fire Standards and Training discontinued the practice of automatically issuing a printed certificate; however, a student may specifically request a printed certificate. Polk State College verifies the fire certificate by accessing the student’s state fire records at the Fire College Department of Insurance Continuing Education (FCDICE), State of Florida Bureau of Fire Standards and Training. The student and FCDICE must coordinate to allow access to records.
In 2016, the Bureau of Fire Standards and Training (BFST) incorporated three fire course prefixes: FFP, BFST, and ATPC. The corresponding course title, curriculum, learning outcomes, and four-digit numbering of courses remained the same. All three prefixes equally apply towards a corresponding State Fire Certification. Therefore, all three prefixes are accepted for articulation through State Certification (i.e., Fire Officer I (new version), Fire Officer I (old version), Fire Officer II, Fire Safety Inspector I, Fire Safety Inspector II, and Investigator (new version) or Investigator I (old version)).
Each student must select a program of study from the appropriate chart:
Chart A is for the student who earned the Fire Officer I Certification after November 18, 2013.
Chart B is for the student who earned the Fire Officer I Certification prior to November 18, 2013.
CHART A: Fire Officer I Certification earned after November 18, 2013
| Options |
Title of Fire Study Option |
Certification Requirements
Fire Officer = FO
Credits Awarded (credit hours)*
Note: In Chart A, FOI refers to the new Fire Officer I Certification.
|
Credits from Certifications
(Range: 24-36)*
|
Additional
Credits
needed **
|
| Option IA |
Fire Supervisor / Fire Safety (A)
|
FOI(12), FOII(12), Inspector I (6), Investigator**** (New)(6)
|
36 |
0 |
| Option IB |
Fire Supervisor / Fire Safety (B) |
FOI(12), FOII(12), Inspector I(6), Investigator I (Old) (6)
|
36 |
0 |
| Option II |
Fire Supervisor / Manager |
FOI(12) & FOII(12)
|
24 |
12 |
| Option III |
Fire Supervisor / Inspector |
FOI (12), FOII (12), & Inspector I(6)
|
30 |
6 |
|
Option IVA
|
Fire Supervisor / Investigator (A) |
FOI(12), FOII(12), & Investigator****(12)(New)
|
36 |
0 |
|
Option IVB
|
Fire Supervisor / Investigator (B) |
FOI(12), FOII(12), & Investigator I (Old)(6)
|
30 |
6 |
| Option V |
Fire Safety Specialist*** |
Inspector I(9), Inspector II(6), Investigator****(21) (New)
|
36 |
0 |
| Option VI |
Fire Safety*** |
Inspector I (9) & Investigator****(24) (New)
|
33 |
3 |
| Option VII |
Fire Investigator*** |
Investigator****(24)(New) (Important: See note to qualify!)
|
24 |
12 |
* A reduced number of credits is awarded because of duplicated fire courses between Investigator I (old), Investigator (new), Inspector I, and Fire Officer I/II. These courses can only be counted once within a variation or option. This explains why the number in the parentheses varies from one option to another. There is a maximum of 36 (and minimum 24) fire credits allowed in these options; thus, the credit ranges from 24 to 36. Investigator I (4 courses) now combines combine Investigator I and II into the new Investigator curriculum (8 courses).
** The student can earn the remaining credits by selecting courses from the program’s list of approved electives.
*** This option is also for a student who does do not hold the Firefighter Certificate of Compliance (basic firefighter training). This option is intended for risk managers, safety personnel, fire marshal personnel, investigators, fire engineers, etc.
****Prior to the new Investigator version, as required by the BFST, the student must possess certification as one of the following: Firefighter, Law Enforcement Officer, Law Enforcement Crime Scene Technician, or law enforcement officer, law enforcement crime scene technician, Fire Safety I fire safety inspector I (sworn or non-sworn). The BFST provides the most current information on these qualifications. (http://www.myfloridacfo.com/Division/SFM/BFST)
CHART B: Fire Officer I Certification earned prior to November 18, 2013
|
Eleven
Variations
|
Certification requirements*
Fire Office =FO
Credits awarded (credit hours)*
In this B Chart, FOI refers to the older Fire Officer I Certification.
|
Credits
(Range: 24-36)*
|
Additional Credits
Needed**
|
| 1A |
FOI(24), Inspector I(6), & Investigator**** (New)(6) (exceeds max) |
36 |
0 |
| 1B |
FOI(24), Inspector I(6), Investigator I (Old)(6) |
36 |
0 |
| 2 |
FOI(24) |
24 |
12 |
| 3 |
FOI(24) FOII* (New)(3) |
27 |
9 |
| 4 |
FOI(24) & FOII (Old)(12) |
36 |
0 |
| 5 |
FOI(24) & Inspector I(6) |
30 |
6 |
| 6A |
FOI(24) & Investigator**** (New)(12) |
36 |
0 |
| 6B |
FOI(24) & Investigator I (Old)(6) |
30 |
6 |
| 7A |
FOI(24), FOII (New)(3), & Investigator**** (New)(9) |
36 |
0 |
| 7B |
FOI(24), FOII (New)(3), & Investigator I (Old)(6) |
33 |
3 |
| 8 |
FOI(24), FOII (New)(3), & Inspector I(6) |
33 |
3 |
*A reduced number of credits is awarded is because of duplicated fire courses between Investigator I (old), Investigator (new), Inspector I, and Fire Officer I/II. These courses can only be counted once within a variation or option. This is the reason for the variation in number seen in the option parentheses. A maximum of 36 credits (and minimum of 24) are allowed in these options; thus, the credit ranges from 24 to 36. Investigator I (4 courses) has been modified to combine Investigator I & II into the new Investigator curriculum (8 courses).
**The student can earn the remaining credits needed by selecting courses from the list of approved electives.
****Prior to Investigator (new version), as required by the BFST, a student must possess certification as one of the following: Firefighter, Law Enforcement Officer, Law Enforcement Crime Scene Technician, or Fire Safety Inspector I (sworn or non-sworn). The BFST provides the most current information regarding these requirements (http://www.myfloridacfo.com/Division/SFM/BFST).
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