The Best Online Master’s in Emergency Management Programs

Established in 1789, Georgetown University is a private research university with an impressive list of notable alumni, including President Bill Clinton. The university enrolls over 19,000 students in a variety of undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral degree programs, including an online master’s in emergency management.

The 33 credit program offers plenty of flexibility by allowing students to complete it fully online, on campus, or through mix of the two. The program can be completed on a full–time or part–time basis and takes two to five years to finish. Designed to meet the needs of entry–level and mid–level professionals, this master’s in emergency management program takes a holistic approach to the field and prioritizes ethics. It has six credits of core courses, 12 credits of foundation courses, and 15 credits of electives. Students work with topics such as:

• Ethics and Critical Decision–making
• Theory and Legal Framework of Emergency Management
• Risk Perception Awareness
• Project Management and Budgeting for emergencies

Students earning this emergency management master’s degree online engage with the same curriculum as their on–campus peers, learn from the same faculty, and have access to the same resources. Applicants should hold (or be nearing completion of) a bachelor’s degree and must submit transcripts, two letters of recommendation, and a CV. GRE and GMAT scores are not required.

Jefferson University’s MS in disaster medicine and management is offered both online and on-campus. The traditional master’s program combines classroom seminars on campus in Philadelphia with online reading materials. The online master’s degree consists mostly of virtual courses, with required in-person attendance for six and a half days of summer session. During this in-person week, students participate in hands-on exercises, including labs, disaster drills, and role playing exercises, and attend lectures from a variety of disaster medicine professionals.

Both the traditional program and the online program have the same overall requirements. The MS in disaster medicine and management consists of 36 credit hours of coursework and can be completed in one to three years, depending on whether a student is taking classes full–time or part–time. Students take eight core courses and four elective courses. The core curriculum covers topics, such as organizational management in disasters, public health implications of disasters, and foundations in emergency management. Elective courses cover more specific topics beyond foundational knowledge in the field, including issues of homeland security and defense, business and crisis continuity, and hazardous materials and industrial safety.

The knowledge acquired through coursework culminates in a capstone research project with an optional internship component. In addition to coursework, this program has an experiential learning requirement where students must complete 100 hours of participation in local, regional, or national agency activities and demonstrate a connection between theory and practice.

Adelphi University, located in Garden City, New York, offers an online master’s degree in emergency management for those interested in pursuing a career in organizations that respond to natural disasters, homeland security issues, and terrorism. This program emphasizes an all-hazard perspective, employing faculty from a large network of emergency management positions in public service, law enforcement, fire safety, the military, and the private sector. Unfortunately, students in Arkansas and North Carolina are currently not able to participate in any of Adelphi’s fully online programs.

Adelphi University’s emergency management master’s online requires 39 credit hours of coursework and a capstone research project. It is possible to earn a certificate in emergency management through the completion of 18 credits. Core program courses cover topics, such as emergency management law, management theory, and health management in times of disaster. Adelphi also offers a specialization track in homeland security where students have the option of supplementing core program credits with courses specific to homeland security.

Admission to the online master’s program in emergency management requires a bachelor’s degree from an accredited institution and a minimum undergraduate GPA of 2.8. Up to six credit hours can be transferred in if a student has already taken a course similar to that required for the program. To request previous course credits be transferred, students should demonstrate completion of the course with a B or higher and provide a syllabus of the course content.

Jacksonville State University is a public university located in Jacksonville, Alabama that offers an online master’s in emergency management. Program requirements include 30 credit hours of coursework (21 hours of core emergency management classes and nine hours of electives) and the successful completion of comprehensive exams. Core courses cover topics, such as hazard mitigation, disaster recovery, and emergency preparedness.

Elective courses offer more specialized insight into subjects like the military’s role in disaster relief, biosecurity, or disasters and the media. In addition, students have the option to take directed study or internship courses. These self–designed programs focus on a selected topic and allow for hands–on experience in an emergency management setting. Courses from this program may also be applied to a graduate certificate in emergency management and a master’s of public administration with a concentration in emergency management. Up to six credits may be transferred from a previous institution with departmental approval.

Applicants to the online MS program in emergency management must hold an undergraduate degree from any field. Candidates with a GPA of 3.0 or higher gain unconditional admission, while candidates with a 2.5 to 2.99 GPA receive conditional admission. Conditionally, admitted students must maintain a 3.0 GPA for the first 12 credit hours in order to progress into the program.

Lander University is a relatively small, publicly funded, liberal arts university located in Greenwood, South Carolina. Lander offers a variety of online courses with a limited amount of fully online degrees, including three graduate programs, one undergraduate program, and a certificate program.

Among their online graduate programs, Lander offers a master’s degree in emergency management online to provide students with specialized knowledge in preparedness, mitigation, recovery, and responses to both manmade and natural disasters. This master’s program requires 31 credit hours of coursework, culminating in a capstone course, and is typically completed in two years. Core courses cover topics including emergency mental health, continuity of government, and foundations in emergency management. Elective courses feature additional topics like hurricane and weather or nuclear incident management. Research projects are built into the curriculum of both core and elective courses so that students may develop their own portfolio throughout the program. Up to nine credit hours of coursework may be transferred from another institution, but each case is evaluated individually. Applicants to the program must hold a bachelor’s degree from an accredited institution and have earned a minimum of a 2.75 GPA.

Arkansas State University is a public research institution and state university located in Jonesboro, Arkansas. As one of the oldest online programs in Arkansas, the university offers a variety of online courses for both undergraduate and graduate degrees. For those who wish to pursue a future in disaster preparedness, planning, and response, A–State offers an online master’s of science degree in disaster preparedness and emergency management. This is an interdisciplinary program located within the College of Nursing and Health Professions and the Department of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management.

This online master’s program consists of six modules, each with a length of seven weeks. The last module is a capstone taking the form of either an internship, thesis, or research project. Four to five modules are offered in each calendar year, and each module contains two courses. Students may begin the program during any module. Students who only manage to take a portion of the courses within that module may take the remaining courses the next time the module is made available.

To be admitted into A–State’s online master’s program in disaster preparedness and emergency management, students should already hold a bachelor’s degree in any discipline and any prerequisite courses.

Millersville University of Pennsylvania is a public university located in Millersville, Pennsylvania. They provide a select number of fully online bachelor’s, master’s, and certificate programs. Among these, they offer an online master’s degree in emergency management.

The online MS program in emergency management requires 30 credit hours of coursework, culminating in a capstone field experience practicum, and is typically completed in two years. The degree benefits those already working in emergency management fields who wish to gain further expertise or wish to enter the field for the first time. Therefore, students may begin the program with a full–time job. The online courses follow an evening schedule with offerings year round to provide maximum flexibility for the student. In addition, all online sessions are recorded and archived for easy access. Core courses cover topics, such as the social dimensions of disaster, emergency mental health and trauma, and emergency preparedness for industry. The capstone practicum requires students to either further their role at their current job in emergency management, volunteer for an organization in an emergency management setting, or complete a research project focusing on a topic in emergency management.

Applicants to the program should already hold a bachelor’s degree from an accredited institution. If the applicant’s undergraduate GPA is higher than a 2.8, a GRE or GMAT exam is not required. Otherwise, a GRE or GMAT exam score should be included in the application.

Arizona State University is a public research university with five campuses across the state. Along with its traditional facility, ASU’s virtual campus is hosted at the Skysong Innovation Center in Scottsdale Arizona, a few minutes away from the ASU Tempe campus. The Skysong Innovation Center provides online courses and continuing or extended education options. Among its diverse course catalog, Arizona State University offers an emergency management master’s online.

This online master’s degree requires a total of 33 credit hours composed of 11 courses, each lasting seven and a half weeks. Instead of adhering to a semester admissions schedule, ASU online offers start dates every seven and a half weeks at the beginning of each course. The entire master’s program can be completed in as little as one year and culminates in an applied capstone research project. Core courses cover topics including hazards governance, applied data analysis in criminal justice, and integrated emergency management. Within the degree plan, students may choose a particular concentration in either biosecurity and threat management, community resilience, emergency management, and homeland security. Elective courses within these concentrations feature subjects, such as urban design for safe and healthy cities, volunteer resource management, and weapons of mass destruction.

ASU requires applicants to have completed a bachelor’s or master’s program in a related field with a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.0, either in the last 60 hours of bachelor’s degree coursework or in a master’s program of an applicable field.

Southern New Hampshire University, located in Manchester, New Hampshire, boasts over 50 graduate programs in on–campus, hybrid, and distance learning formats. In particular, their emergency management master’s degree online benefits those who wish to pursue leadership positions in the fields of crisis recovery, emergency preparedness, disaster response programs, and global response programs. Within their department of management, emergency management is one of three specialized degree tracks offered, in addition to construction management and healthcare management.

The master’s in emergency management online curriculum includes 36 credit hours of coursework and can be completed in 15 months. Required courses cover a combination of management and emergency response topics, such as corporate communications, human behavior in organizations, and disaster response and recovery. Each course takes place over a 10–week term.

SNHU is a private, nonprofit institution of higher learning, and its online programs adhere to the same standards as its traditional on campus programs. To be admitted into the master’s program, students must already hold a bachelor’s degree. However, a GMAT or GRE score is not required during the application process. SNHU offers a 25% discount on tuition for U.S. service members in the military, including spouses of service members on active duty.

The University of Maryland University College is located in Adelphi, Maryland. It offers 120 programs in both on–campus and online formats, including certification programs, bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees. One such degree is their online management master’s degree with a specialization in emergency management. This program is tailored toward mid-career professionals with a background in statistics, finance, or accounting who wish to delve into leadership roles at organizations specializing in crisis and disaster response. Those without previous professional or statistical experience may still apply but must take an additional introduction to research methods course.

UMUC’s management master’s degree requires 36 credit hours of coursework, including a strategic management capstone course, and can generally be completed in two years. Core courses include organizational theory and behavior, financial decision making, and statistics for managerial decision making. Courses specific to the emergency management specialization feature topics like hazard risk assessment and resilience planning. All courses take place completely online with a select number of courses available in hybrid learning formats. Up to six credits may be transferred from a previous institution. The program requires students to maintain a 3.0 GPA or higher at all times and fulfill all degree requirements within five years.

This online master’s program also prepares students to take an industry certification exam, the Certified Emergency Manager or CEM(R). The degree itself can fulfill part of the examination requirements.