Study plan - Master in Fire Safety

Are you interested in a unique master's degree program concerning Fire Safety? Do you want to contribute to a more fire safe society? With a master's degree in Fire Safety you will have the competence to handle advanced and complex fire safety issues!

Fire Safety is becoming more and more important in today's society, and the need for knowledge and competence in this field is increasing rapidly.

Learning outcomes

A candidate after completed qualifications should have the following total learning outcomes:

Knowledge:

The candidate:

• has advanced knowledge that provides a comprehensive understanding of fire safety analysis and can evaluate various fire scenarios and their expected impact
• has a thorough knowledge of human behavior in a fire situation and developed fires with focus on evacuation
• has a thorough knowledge of risk-based safety assessments, barrier philosophies with preventive and consequence-reducing measures
• knows the research and development in the field of fire safety in general and especially within their own specialization
• can update their knowledge in the field of fire safety, by gathering independent information and contact with experts and practice

Skills:

The candidate:

• can analyze and solve theoretical, technical and practical issues in fire safety for buildings, process plants, ships and tunnels
• can perform modeling of various fire scenarios and impact assessment of these
• can calculate and model the smoke production and toxicological effects depending on the type of fire and materials
• can implement evacuation experiments and model evacuation for actual user-groups and identify and remedy bottlenecks for effective evacuation
• use appropriate methods to assess fire safety level in a given context
• can dimension active and passive fire protection measures
• can identify major-accident hazards and suggest appropriate measures for reduction of major accidents
• can apply knowledge and relevant results from research and development for fire prevention measures and justify their choices
• can complete an independent, limited research or development work under supervision and in accordance with applicable ethical norms

General competence:

The candidate:

• can describe and make use of national and international standards in own working field
• can reflect over own professional practice, also in teams and in an interdisciplinary context, and adapt the efforts of the current working situation
• can contribute to the development of good practice in fire safety and apply their knowledge and skills in new areas
• can discuss human behavior, including challenges related to risk groups in formulating the organizational fire protection
• can contribute to innovation, innovation of systems, organizations or design that improves fire safety
• can analyze and think critically about information sources and apply these to make decisions can communicate about fire-related issues and fire risk to companies, the relevant authorities, specialists in the field and the general public

Content

Central subjects in the master's program are fire safety barriers to prevent ignition and fire, understanding of various scenarios for fire and smoke development, calculation of fire and smoke and risk to people, property and environment, fireproof design, fire safety risk assessment, human behavior in fire and evacuation, emergency, fire protection in industry and municipalities, communication and accident investigation.

Target group:

Candidates with Bachelor's degree in Fire Safety. Candidates with Bachelor's degrees in other engineering disciplines (subjects) and Bridging course for Master in Fire Safety Engineering.

Teaching

Teaching methods selected to convey the subject should invite to student activity and independent thinking. For the program there are offered a variety of working and teaching methods, tailored to the individual subject, justified by a communication to inspire and engage each student in the subject. The work is organized through lectures, seminars, group projects and presentations. The first year consists of specialization in theoretical subjects, with about 6 intensive lecture weeks each semester. All lectures are recorded and made available via the university learning platform.

Practical training: Not applicable

R&D base:

The program provides a good background for teaching, research and development, and will be eligible for PhD positions. The final thesis will be largely associated with research and development at local industries. By connecting the thesis to such work, students will also be prepared for PhD studies, both nationally and internationally.

Practical information about the full time program:

The program is a challenging higher degree study that spans two years. The program builds on a 3-year bachelor in fire safety engineering and has a scope of 120 credits (ECTS).

The first year consists of studying theoretical subjects of 10 ECTS each, with about 5 intensive teaching weeks per semester. Primary language of instruction in education is English. At some of the topics will be prerequisites when education is structured so that the courses build on each other throughout the study.

Second year consists of independent work in the form of a thesis of 60 ECTS.

The workload in a course is measured in credit (ECTS). One year study is normally 60 credits in full progression. Students should expect to spend a minimum of 40 hours effective working hours per week on average in this master study.

Information and communication technology is integrated into teaching with Canvas and computerized support systems as important tools in the scientific and educational work.

Teaching takes place primarily between the hours of 8:15 a.m. and 5:00 p.m., but lectures outside this time frame may occur.

Assessment

From the Norwegian version:

In the programme there is used a variety of assessment methods in the different courses. The assessment method in a course could i.e. be written school exam, portfolio, oral exam, project og written home exam. A course may have an assessment method were several forms of assessment is combined, like an oral exam in combination with a portfolio. Many courses have compulsory coursework, that is assignments, activities or work that does not count at the final grade, but must be approved for the student to be eligible to take the exam.

Original English version:

Assessment methods consist mainly of evaluating student work (individual or group) and exams (oral and written). Student work will often be subject to oral presentations that are part of the evaluation. For some courses it appropriate to use group work where students exert in practical features. The schemes are adapted to the different learning outcomes and teaching methods to be best suited to evaluate the extent to which students have achieved the learning outcomes. Most courses are practicing submission of student projects as part of the evaluation.

Appendix in both versions:

Details regarding the assessment methods are stated in the course description for each course, and are reviewed by the person with course responsibility each semester. See also Regulations regarding studies and examination at Western Norway University of Applied Sciences.

Internationalization

Western Norway University of Applied Sciences has a strategic plan on binding partnerships with international academic institutions where research is central. We will on request facilitate for students to take a part of their education abroad, both through institutions where agreement exists, and by facilitating arrangement where students can travel on their own initiative to educational institutions that we currently don't have agreements with. The university promote own studies to international students abroad. The university has signed agreements for fire safety at Master's level with the University of Maryland (U.S.A.) and UNI Magdeburg (Germany).