Basic Fire Academy
Fresno City College · Fresno, CA
- Cost
- $4,657
- Length
- 36 weeks
- Working 6 months later
- Not reported
Program names and program descriptions appear here in English, because that is the only language the federal and state records publish them in. Occupation titles are translated where O*NET publishes a Spanish name. Everything else on this page is translated.
What happened to people who took this
- People enrolled
- 982
- Finished the program
- 85%Based on 46 peopleTypical California program: 85% of 1,951 reportingThat median pools every California program that reported this measure, whatever its length, credential, or field, and leaves out the ones that reported nothing. It is a reference point, not a rating of this program.
- Working 6 months later
- Not reported
- Earnings in one quarter after
- Not reported
The job this trains for
This describes the jobs people do, not the classes this program teaches. It comes from the U.S. Department of Labor, which asks people already doing the work. The Department publishes it in English only, so the job names and the sentences below stay in English on this page.
Where California publishes a separate figure for Fresno MSA (Fresno and Madera Counties), it appears beneath the statewide one. Statewide stays the headline: people who train here do not necessarily work here.
Firefighters
Job ads may call this: Hot Shot · Firefighter · Fire Fighter · Fire Engineer
Some of what people in this job do. The Department rates how important each one is, and they appear in that order.
- Rescue survivors from burning buildings, accident sites, and water hazards.
- Dress with equipment such as fire-resistant clothing and breathing apparatus.
- Assess fires and situations and report conditions to superiors to receive instructions, using two-way radios.
- Move toward the source of a fire, using knowledge of types of fires, construction design, building materials, and physical layout of properties.
Show 4 more things this job involves
- Respond to fire alarms and other calls for assistance, such as automobile and industrial accidents.
- Create openings in buildings for ventilation or entrance, using axes, chisels, crowbars, electric saws, or core cutters.
- Drive and operate fire fighting vehicles and equipment.
- Inspect fire sites after flames have been extinguished to ensure that there is no further danger.
What this pays in Fresno MSA (Fresno and Madera Counties)
Each bar runs from the lowest-paid tenth to the highest-paid tenth. The darker middle is where half the people are, and the line is the median.
| Area | The lowest-paid tenth earn under | Half earn under | The highest-paid tenth earn over |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fresno MSA (Fresno and Madera Counties) | $52,312 | $81,165 | $135,405 |
| Across California | $53,717 | $87,276 | $139,599 |
The federal Bureau of Labor Statistics' 2026 figures for Fresno MSA (Fresno and Madera Counties) beside the same figures for the whole state. A region can sit well below or above the statewide spread, and the statewide number is the one most often quoted — so where they differ, the local row is the one that describes the work near this program.
- Typical pay in California
- $87,276per yearFresno MSA: $70,550
- Projected openings
- 25,610Fresno MSA: 560
- Projected change
- +5%
- Usually needs
- Postsecondary non-degree award
Getting in
- Experience needed first
- None
- Training after you are hired
- More than a year
New hires are trained on the job for more than a year after they start. The classroom part is the beginning of this work, not the whole of it.
These are the federal government's answers for the occupation, not rules this provider sets. California publishes the same two answers for every one of these jobs.
Program details
This is a hybrid or blended program providing both in-person and online instruction.
The Basic Fire Academy program offers curriculum to prepare students with the knowledge and skills necessary to become a State of California Certified Firefighter I.Upon completion employment opportunities are found in various branches of government and the private sector.
Someone else may be able to pay for this
This program was on California's Eligible Training Provider List when the state last reported it to the U.S. Department of Labor (2026-09-18). Programs on that list can be paid for through an Individual Training Account. Listings are renewed periodically and can lapse, so a program listed when the state last reported may not be listed today. Ask before you rely on it.
Ask before you enroll, not after
The order the rules set out starts at the center rather than at the school. Before a center can find somebody eligible for training services it has to gather enough to decide, at a minimum through an interview, evaluation or assessment and career planning. Referring a person to the provider they have chosen and setting up the account both come after that, and both are the center's to do — the account is a payment agreement with the training provider, and it is the provider that is paid through it. So the call belongs before enrolling and before paying. Anyone who has already done either should still ask, and ask what it means for them.
The place to ask is an America's Job Center of California
Fresno East -Workforce ConnectionComprehensive center
Phone: 559-230-4440
1455 E. Shaw AvenueFresno, CA 93710about 2.1 miles away
Hours: Monday -Friday 8:00am-5:00pm
RS Fresno Comprehensive - Workforce ConnectionComprehensive center
Phone: 559-230-3600
3170 W. Shaw AvenueSuite 101Fresno, CA 93711about 2.7 miles away
Hours: Monday through Friday 8:00 am - 5:00 pm
Has a veterans' representative
Reverend Swillis Neighborhood Youth Center (NYC)Affiliate site
Phone: 559-264-1048
1805 E. California AvenueReverend Swills Neighborhood Youth CenterFresno, CA 93706about 5.4 miles away
Hours: Monday-Friday 8:30 am - 5:00pm.
At a comprehensive center all the required partner programs can be reached; an affiliate site offers some of them. Distances are straight-line, so the drive is longer. Call before you travel: opening hours here are as the federal directory published them, and the state notes its own staff are not present at every location.
Find a center anywhere in California, and check what is on the list today:
CareerOneStop — American Job Center Finder (U.S. DOL) · California EDD — Office Locator · California EDD — Eligible Training Provider List
How this gets paid for, and what to ask →
Whether a person can have a program paid for is decided by their local workforce development board and the America's Job Center staff who interview them — not by this site, and not by the training provider. California has 45 local workforce development areas and each sets its own policies, so the answer can differ between two people in neighboring counties. Nothing here is a promise of funding or a determination of eligibility.
The rules cited here, and the state and federal sites linked to, are published in English.
How this site gets its figures, and what they do not tell you →