Accredited Academies

The Office of the State Fire Marshal (OSFM) is the CAL FIRE program that protects life and property through the development and application of fire prevention, engineering, training and education, and enforcement. State Fire Training (SFT) is the OSFM division that establishes, develops, and delivers standardized training and education for the California fire service.

The OSFM accredits academic institutions and fire agencies to deliver fire training and education. Although the OSFM's State Fire Training division does not own the facilities or operate the actual delivery of courses of instruction, it does recognize and accredit delivery systems while providing overall coordination and continuity. Additionally, OSFM has the authority to create a set of criteria to recognize accredited institutions and agencies that desire their student population to be recognized as candidates.

There are two types of Accredited Academies; Accredited Regional Training Programs (ARTP) and Accredited Local Academies (ALA). An Accredited Regional Training Program (ARTP) is defined as a partnership between an accredited community college or university and the Office of the State Fire Marshal (OSFM) to deliver approved State Fire Training (SFT) curriculum within a given region. An Accredited Local Academy (ALA) is defined as a partnership between a fire agency serving a specific authority having jurisdiction and the Office of the State Fire Marshal (OSFM) to deliver approved State Fire Training (SFT) curriculum within a given region.

Academy Information

State Fire Training does not own the facilities or operate the actual delivery of courses or academies, therefore, enrollment into an Accredited Academy is managed individually by each independent academy. For more information regarding enrollment into an Accredited Academy locate and contact a facility from either the list or map below.

An Accredited Academy may also serve as a testing site for certification examinations. Any Accredited Academy may offer certification testing for available certification levels (ex. Fire Fighter 1, Fire Fighter 2, etc.). Enrollment and registration are facilitated by each site independently, therefore, contact your preferred site for more details. 

A quick overview of the SFT Certification Examination process is available via this Certification Examination Overview handout (PDF).  

California has many accredited regional and local academies throughout the State. Locate an accredited academy from the map below. 

Find an ARTP

An Accredited Regional Training Program (ARTP), is defined as a partnership between an accredited community college or university and the OSFM to deliver approved SFT curriculum regionally.

Find an ALA

An Accredited Local Academy (ALA) is defined as a single fire agency, which provides training for in-house personnel only, and which actively provides state, municipal, county, or fire district fire protection services.

Accreditation Information for Accredited Administrators

For a detailed summary of the accreditation and re-accreditation process for ARTP's & ALA's please refer to the SFT Procedures Manual.

A complete accreditation application package includes:

  1. Cover Letter
  2. Self-Assessment Report Sample (Docx)
  3. Letters of support
  4. Accredited Academy Fees Fee Schedule Form
  5. Certification Exam Agency Agreement Form (Docx)(if applicable)

Helmet lined up at an academyTo successfully receive a California OSFM Instructor certification or to register as an Instructor or lead/skills evaluator position, the ARTP Dean/College Administrator, Technology Director or Technology Coordinator signing the Instructor certification task book or experience letter must be listed in the SFT ARTP Dean/College Administrator, Technology Director or Technology Coordinator Authorized Signer database before the instructor certification task book or experience letter can be approved.

To update the ARTP Dean/College Administrator, Technology Director or Technology Coordinator Authorized Signer, please use this ARTP Authorized Signer Template (Docx).

Only Accredited Regional Training Programs (ARTP) and Accredited Local Academies (ALA) may deliver a State Fire Training (SFT) course in a distance learning format (i.e., Canvas, Microsoft Teams, Target Solutions, WebEx, Zoom) per the State Fire Training Procedures Manual, Section 3.7. Learn about distance education options and the application process by reviewing the Electronic Delivery of SFT Courses Information Bulletin (PDF).

For eligible agencies who are interested in delivering courses online or hybrid, the following forms need to be included in your accreditation/re-accreditation application package:

For more information regarding the certification examination or Lead/Skills Evaluator registration, visit the Evaluator Resources web page.

Fire Fighter 2019: For clarifying information regarding the Fire Fighter (2019) implementation specific to Accredited Academies, review the Information Bulletin (PDF).