Online Emergency Management Degrees

Emergency management specialists develop disaster response plans, coordinating with emergency personnel at state and local agencies. They also train people in disaster preparedness and proper emergency response. A relatively new academic discipline, emergency management and the broader field of homeland security cover the different types of natural and manmade disasters, the public agencies (such as FEMA) charged with responding to disaster, and response techniques. Emergency response techniques include:

• Establishing command and control
• Coordinating communications
• Evacuating people
• Cleaning up the disaster site

In addition, emergency management specialists may focus on special issues such as information security, health care emergency management, public administration, disaster medicine or risk management.

More and more colleges and universities are offering online emergency management degrees. Today, there are degrees in emergency management at all levels, from associate to doctoral. The most common qualification is the master's degree or graduate certificate, both of which offer advanced training for public officials who already have a bachelor's degree in another field. Popular emergency management degrees include:

• Bachelor of Science. The B.S. in emergency management or homeland security builds a foundation in general education as well as disaster preparedness and response. This four-year undergraduate qualification is more versatile than the A.A.S., and also serves as a stepping stone to a graduate program.
• Master of Science, Master of Public Administration or MBA. The master's degree options approach emergency management from different disciplinary backgrounds, preparing graduates for careers in agency management, health care management, analyst or research roles.
• Certificate. The undergraduate or graduate certificate offers targeted training geared toward current practitioners.

Some certificate and degree curricula satisfy requirements for the FEMA Professional Development Series certificate, an asset for career advancement.

Online coursework in emergency management program includes academic courses geared toward understanding group behavior, criminology, crisis intervention and logistics and planning. Specific programs may also require students to complete an independent or group project analyzing disaster preparedness, creating emergency plans or researching a particular topic in the field.

Emergency management graduates generally assume specialist roles in local, state and federal disaster preparedness agencies. In addition to public civilian and military jobs, emergency management specialists are in demand at hospitals, colleges and universities and community relief groups. Petroleum companies are the top-paying private-sector employer, with a mean annual salary of $100,530, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reports.

Emergency management specialists face bright prospects in the coming decade, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The BLS predicts 22 percent job growth in the 2008 and 2018 period.

In addition to emergency management specialist careers, graduates can find work in intelligence analysis, information security and border security. With a graduate degree, specialists may advance into supervisory roles such as emergency management director.

• Salaries: The average annual wage for emergency management specialists was $56,900 as of May 2009. California offers the highest salary, at $78,650 in 2009 (BLS).
• Education requirements: A bachelor's degree is the minimum qualification for most jobs, though many employers prefer graduate training or certification as well.
• Additional qualifications: Top certifications include the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and National Incident Management System (NIMS) credentials.