Best degree programs for Lifeguards, Ski Patrol, and Other Recreational Protective Service Workers, ranked by enrollment
1 college programs and 21 schools train Lifeguards, Ski Patrol, and Other Recreational Protective Service Workers. Compare graduates per year, cost and pay, $33,580 median wage, 157,550 U.S. jobs. Federal data.
1 college programs at 21 schools train lifeguards, ski patrol, and other recreational protective service workers, graduating 222 people a year (IPEDS completions). The largest is Environmental/Natural Resources Law Enforcement and Protective Services. The job pays a median of $33,580 (BLS OEWS May 2025).
About lifeguards, ski patrol, and other recreational protective service workers
Monitor recreational areas, such as pools, beaches, or ski slopes, to provide assistance and protection to participants.
Fields of study that lead to this job
Grouped at the 4-digit CIP level, the tier our program pages are built on. Numbers are graduates per year.
1 degree programs that lead to this job
Ranked by graduates per year (IPEDS completions). Graduate earnings and debt are College Scorecard figures for people who finished the program, reported at the 4-digit CIP level, so specializations within one field share a figure. That is a different measurement from the occupation-wide wages further down this page.
| # | Program | Graduates / yr | Share of pipeline | Schools | Grad earnings (1 yr) | Median debt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | CIP 03.0208 | 222 | 100.0% | 21 | $37,946 | $24,125 |
Top 21 schools by graduates into this job
Counting every feeder program a school offers, not just its largest one.
What lifeguards, ski patrol, and other recreational protective service workers earn
What people already working in this job earn (BLS OEWS May 2025). Not graduate earnings.
Top-paying states
Top-paying metro areas
Job outlook
Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections, 2024 to 2034.
Where the jobs are, state by state
Pick a state for in-state pay, the schools there, and the programs they run.
| State | Median pay | Jobs | Concentration | Schools | Graduates / yr |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Minnesotalimited | $31,870 | 2,130 | 0.71× | 2 | 38 |
| Coloradolimited | $35,640 | 5,430 | 1.86× | 2 | 37 |
| Mainemoderate | $34,320 | 340 | 0.53× | 4 | 28 |
| Ohiolimited | $27,770 | 6,450 | 1.15× | 1 | 25 |
| Wisconsinlimited | $28,570 | 3,350 | 1.12× | 1 | 25 |
| Oklahomalimited | $25,250 | 650 | 0.38× | 1 | 20 |
| South Dakotalimited | $30,990 | 490 | 1.05× | 1 | 16 |
| Washingtonlimited | $37,770 | 4,720 | 1.31× | 1 | 14 |
| Texaslimited | $29,450 | 11,320 | 0.79× | 1 | 8 |
| Illinoislimited | $33,710 | 5,880 | 0.95× | 1 | 3 |
| New Yorklimited | $36,590 | 8,740 | 0.89× | 1 | 2 |
| Iowalimited | $25,460 | 1,410 | 0.89× | 1 | 1 |
| Missourilimited | $29,260 | 3,100 | 1.04× | 1 | 1 |
| Pennsylvanialimited | $29,480 | 5,450 | 0.89× | 1 | 1 |
| Wyominglimited | $29,030 | 500 | 1.77× | 1 | 1 |
Skills and tools
From O*NET, the U.S. Department of Labor's occupational database. Importance is a 1 to 5 scale.
What they do day to day
- Patrol or monitor recreational areas, such as trails, slopes, or swimming areas, on foot, in vehicles, or from towers.
- Rescue distressed persons, using rescue techniques and equipment.
- Contact emergency medical personnel in case of serious injury.
- Examine injured persons and administer first aid or cardiopulmonary resuscitation, if necessary, using training and medical supplies and equipment.
- Warn recreational participants of inclement weather, unsafe areas, or illegal conduct.
- Maintain quality of pool water by testing chemical levels.
- Complete and maintain records of weather and beach conditions, emergency medical treatments performed, and other relevant incident information.
- Instruct participants in skiing, swimming, or other recreational activities and provide safety precaution information.
Skills
- Monitoring3.8
- Speaking3.5
- Active Listening3.1
- Learning Strategies3.1
- Critical Thinking3.0
- Reading Comprehension2.9
- Active Learning2.8
- Writing2.5
Knowledge areas
- Customer and Personal Service4.0
- Public Safety and Security3.6
- English Language3.5
- Education and Training3.1
- Medicine and Dentistry3.0
- Psychology3.0
Abilities
- Problem Sensitivity4.0
- Oral Expression3.5
- Far Vision3.5
- Oral Comprehension3.3
- Selective Attention3.3
- Speech Clarity3.3
Core activities
- Assisting and Caring for Others4.6
- Performing General Physical Activities4.4
- Performing for or Working Directly with the Public4.1
- Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Materials4.1
- Documenting/Recording Information3.9
- Making Decisions and Solving Problems3.9
Tools and technology
hotmarks an O*NET hot technologyHow to get in
How to become a Lifeguard
Job zone 2 of 5 · SVP Below 6.0- Typical entry education
- No formal educational credential
- On-the-job training
- Short-term on-the-job training
Usually requires a high school diploma or GED, though some occupations may not.
Some occupations may need little or no previous experience; others require several months to a year of experience. For example, landscaping and groundskeeping workers might require very little training or previous experience, while agricultural equipment operators can benefit from on-the job training.
Ranges from a few days to one year of on-the-job training.
Every major mapped to this job
The official federal mapping behind the rankings above.
All 1 majors mapped to Lifeguards, Ski Patrol, and Other Recreational Protective Service Workers1 of them graduated someone in the latest IPEDS year. NCES CIP 2020 → SOC 2018 crosswalk.+
- 03.0208Environmental/Natural Resources Law Enforcement and Protective Services
Related careers
Jobs O*NET identifies as close to this one, with their own pay and outlook.
Common questions
What degree do you need to become a Lifeguard?+
No formal educational credential is the typical entry-level education BLS reports for this occupation. The most common program people actually graduate from is Environmental/Natural Resources Law Enforcement and Protective Services, which awarded 222 degrees in 2024-25, 100.0% of everyone graduating from a program that feeds this career.
Which college majors lead to becoming a Lifeguard?+
The NCES CIP-to-SOC crosswalk maps 1 programs to this occupation. The largest are Environmental/Natural Resources Management and Policy. Together they graduate about 222 people a year.
How much do lifeguards, ski patrol, and other recreational protective service workers earn?+
The median is $33,580 a year (BLS OEWS May 2025). The middle range runs from $25,780 at the 10th percentile to $43,970 at the 90th. This is pay for people already working in the occupation, not the same thing as graduate earnings one year after finishing a degree.
Is demand for lifeguards, ski patrol, and other recreational protective service workers growing?+
BLS projects a +5.8% change in employment between 2024 and 2034, faster than average, with roughly 42,700 openings a year nationally once retirements and job changes are counted.
How many schools offer programs for this career?+
21 institutions reported graduates from at least one of the 1 programs that feed this occupation in IPEDS 2024-25. Rankings on this page use graduates per year, because the federal data publishes no enrollment count by program.
What other job titles do lifeguards, ski patrol, and other recreational protective service workers work under?+
Employers advertise this work under many names. O*NET records Lifeguard, Ski Patroller, Pool Attendant, Ocean Lifeguard among the most commonly reported, all mapping to SOC 33-9092.
About the data on this page
Rankings use IPEDS completions 2024-25, degrees awarded per year. That is the closest federal measure of how many people a program puts into a career, because no federal dataset publishes enrollment by program. Wages and employment come from BLS OEWS May 2025, growth and openings from BLS Employment Projections 2024-34, and which majors lead to which jobs from the NCES CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 crosswalk. Occupation descriptions, tasks, skills and tools are O*NET 30.3 (CC BY 4.0, U.S. Department of Labor/ETA).
BLS Occupational Employment & Wage Statistics
May 2025Wages, employment counts, location quotients and metro breakdowns.
BLS Employment Projections
2024–34Projected growth, annual openings and typical entry-level education.
IPEDS Completions
2024-25 (provisional)Graduates per year by program and institution — the ranking metric.
College Scorecard, Field of Study
2020-21 cohortsMedian graduate earnings one year after completion, and median debt.
Census Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes
latest availableGraduate earnings 1/5/10 years out, where the state participates.
NCES CIP 2020 and the CIP-to-SOC 2018 crosswalk
CIP 2020 / SOC 2018Which college programs officially lead to this occupation.
O*NET Database 30.3
30.3Tasks, skills, knowledge, tools, job zone and alternate job titles.
Official source →CC BY 4.0, U.S. Department of Labor / ETA
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