Certified Fire Protection Specialist (CFPS)
The promotion of the field of fire protection and prevention is the aim of the Certified Fire Protection Specialist (CFPS) program. You don’t need a certain degree to get your CFPS designation. The certificate offers the fire protection specialist a chance to gain professional recognition and strikes a balance between study and experience. The National Fire Protection Association upholds standards for certification and recertification of fire protection professionals.
Exam Eligibility
Candidates must cite one of the following requirements on their application to be qualified to take the CFPS exam:
- A bachelor’s or Master’s degree in a field connected to fire prevention from an approved college or university, including degrees in engineering fields used in the practice of fire protection; and TWO YEARS of verifiable professional experience devoted to reducing fire damage, both material and financial.
- An approved college or university-accredited Associate’s degree in a Fire Protection-related discipline*, or a Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in any other field, plus FOUR years of verifiable professional experience devoted to reducing fire damage, both material and financial.
- High school graduation or its equivalent plus SIX years of documented work experience devoted to minimizing financial and material losses due to fire.
What are the required documents for the examination?
The following papers must be sent with your finished application:
- Application form that has been completed, signed, and has a valid credit card number for payment.
- evidence proving your eligibility
- Code of Conduct and Ethics Declaration signed copy (final page of the Application)
For more information, click on Certified Fire Protection Specialist (CFPS) FAQ
Course Outline for Certified Fire Protection Specialist (CFPS)
Safety in the Built Environment: 5%
- Understand the challenges to safety in the built environment
- Types of Construction
- Occupancy Classifications
- Concepts and application of compartmentation
- Understand the application of fire protection features
- Be familiar with codes and standards for the built environment, major Standards Development Organizations (SDOs), and their processes
Basics of Fire and Fire Science: 10%
- Understand the chemistry and physics of fire
- Identify dynamics of fire growth and products of combustion (Heat Release Rate, Flame Spread and Smoke Development)
Information and Analysis for Fire Protection: 5%
- Understand the process, concepts, and tools involved with fire loss investigation
- Demonstrate proficiency in the use of fire incident data and statistics
- Perform fire analysis
Human Behavior in Fire Emergencies: 5%
- Understand the principles of human behavior in fire
- Perform egress design and prediction calculations
Fire Prevention: Programs, Materials, Processes, and Environments: 15%
- Understand Fire hazards and prevention principles
- Understand hazards to Life Safety and mitigation principles
- Understand the components, fire hazards, operating principles and fire protection practices associated with the various types of systems, including, but not limited to:
- HVAC and refrigeration systems
- Emergency and standby power systems
- Photovoltaic systems
- Energy Storage Systems
- Safety Control Systems (PLC Safety Controllers, Hardwired Interlock Systems)
- Materials-handling equipment
- Electronic equipment
- Commercial kitchen and cooking equipment
- Understand and identify the fire hazards and hazard mitigation principles associated with the various processes, including, but not limited to:
- Grinding processes
- Semiconductor manufacturing
- Hot work
- Understand the hazards and fire protection best practices associated with the following material storage, handling, and housekeeping principles
- Demonstrate knowledge of proper storage and handling procedures of solid fuels, flammable and combustible liquids and gases, and dusts.
- Understanding the exposures and controls for various storage arrangements.
- Understand explosion prevention and protection
Facility Fire Hazard Management: 10%
- Demonstrate a knowledge and understanding of:
- Fire department response tactics and procedures
- Types of building construction and how they relate to fire hazards and fire service response
- Environmental hazards to facilities
- Understand how to perform fire, explosion, and life safety risk assessment and analysis of a given facility.
- Understand how to conduct complex inspection surveys of commercial and residential properties to evaluate physical characteristics of a property and business and evaluate compliance with applicable codes, standards, and regulations.
- Understand the processes of acquisition, installation, operation, maintenance and disposition of building systems.
- Develop and manage emergency preparedness, response, and business continuity procedures and assure all emergency systems and procedures are tested as planned.
- Understand public and private water systems.
- Understand fire department access needs for facilities.
System Approaches to Property Classes: 5%
- Know how to classify occupancies
- Understand life safety as it relates to different occupancy classifications
- Understand fire protection in special occupancies, including, but not limited to:
- High-rises
- Institutional facilities
- Hazardous material operations
- Warehouse and storage operations
Organizing for Fire and Rescue Services: 5%
- Perform pre-incident planning for industrial, residential, and commercial facilities
- Understand operations of fire loss prevention and emergency organizations
- Understand operations of emergency medical services
- Understand fire prevention and code enforcement operations
- Understand fire and emergency service training methodology
- Understand operations of fire department facilities and fire training facilities
- Understand operations of public emergency services communication systems
- Understand the basics of fire department apparatus and equipment
- Understand the use and function of fire and emergency services protective clothing and protective equipment (PPE)
- Evaluate fire department response and prevention resources and the placement thereof
- Understand the management of fire response operations
- Understand the concept of Community Risk Reduction (CRR)
Detection and Alarm: 10%
- Understand the fundamentals and operational characteristics of the modern fire alarm and detection systems:
- Equipment
- Design and installation
- Initiating devices
- Interaction of interfaced fire protection systems
- Understand inspection, testing, and maintenance of fire alarm systems
- Understand surveillance and fire guard services for fire protection
- Understand plans review for detection and alarm systems
- Understanding the basic design and installation concepts of Two-way Radio Communication Enhancement Systems
- Understand the benefits and proper application of smoke alarms in the one-and two-family dwelling environment
Water-Based Fire Suppression: 20%
- Understand the design and operation of water distribution systems
- Understand water supply system requirements
- Understand design criteria for hydraulics for fire protection
- Determine water supply adequacy testing and determination
- Identify and understand the operating principles of stationary fire pumps
- Understand inspection, testing, and maintenance processes and requirements for water-based suppression systems
- Understand the characteristics and applications of the following types of water-based suppression systems:
- Automatic sprinkler systems
- Fine water mist systems
- Foam-water sprinkler systems
- Deluge systems
- Understand the benefits and proper application of fire sprinkler systems in the one-and two-family dwelling environment.
Fire Suppression without Water: 5%
- Understand the proper use/application, and the limitations of non-water based agents and systems (clean agent, hybrid, carbon dioxide, dry and wet chemical, foam, etc.)
- Understand the design, proper installation, and operation of non-water-based extinguishing systems
- Understand inspection, testing, and maintenance processes and requirements for non-water-based extinguishing systems.
- Understand the proper installation, use, testing, and maintenance of portable fire extinguishers
Confining Fires: 5%
- Understand building construction elements for fire protection
- Understand the following elements of confinement of fire in buildings
- Fire resistance rated construction
- Fire walls, barrier, and partitions
- Smoke barriers
- Fire doors and windows
- Protection of openings and penetrations
- Understand structural damage factors to be evaluated after a fire
- Understand fire hazards associated with construction, alteration and demolition of buildings
Preparation Guide: Certified Fire Protection Specialist (CFPS)
A preparation guide is a document that outlines the steps and procedures that an organization should follow in order to prepare for a specific event or activity. The guide typically includes information on what needs to be done, when it should be done, and who is responsible for completing the tasks. Let’s start preparation for Certified Fire Protection Specialist (CFPS).
- Understand the exam format and content: Understand the format of the CFPS exam, including the number of questions, the duration of the exam, and the content areas that will be covered.
- Review the exam outline and study materials: Review the exam outline and study materials provided by the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) and familiarize yourself with the topics that will be covered on the exam.
- Create a study schedule: Create a study schedule that outlines when and how you will study for the exam. It’s important to have a plan to ensure that you have enough time to cover all of the material before the exam.
- Use practice questions and study guides: Use practice questions and study guides to help you prepare for the exam. These resources can help you understand the types of questions that will be on the exam and help you identify areas where you need to focus your studies.
- Take practice exams: Take practice exams to simulate the experience of taking the actual exam. This will help you become familiar with the exam format, and get an idea of how well you are prepared for the exam. Try testpreptraining free practice test papers!
- Attend review classes or seek professional guidance: Attend review classes or seek professional guidance from certified fire protection specialists to gain additional knowledge and insights about the exam.
- Get enough rest and stay focused: Get enough rest and stay focused during the exam. The night before the exam avoid any stress, distractions and make sure you are well-rested and focused for the exam.
- Join professional organizations: Joining professional organizations such as the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) can also provide additional support
