Fire Protection at Chemeketa Community College

The $16,419 in typical debt sits above both the national median for fire protection programs ($11,250) and right at Oregon's state median, which matters when peer programs nationally suggest first-year earnings around $56,000. That's a debt-to-earnings ratio of 0.29—manageable by most standards, but worth noting that many fire protection programs across the country graduate students with less debt while leading to similar outcomes. For a family watching every dollar, that gap represents real money that could have gone to other expenses during the career launch phase.

What makes this trickier to evaluate is that we're working with estimated earnings based on national data, not outcomes specific to Chemeketa's graduates. Fire protection is a field where local hiring practices, department budgets, and certification requirements can vary significantly by region. The $56,000 estimate reflects what's typical nationally, but Oregon's public safety landscape and cost of living might tell a different story. The program serves a substantial population of Pell grant recipients (34%), which suggests it's accessible to students from various economic backgrounds, though that higher debt load becomes more consequential for those starting with fewer financial cushions.

If your child is committed to firefighting or emergency services, this program could work—the debt isn't catastrophic and the field offers stability. But push the school for placement data specific to their graduates: where do they get hired, at what pay, and how quickly? The difference between the estimate and reality could swing this from reasonable to either better or worse than it appears.