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SEC/471

Critical Incident Management

3 credits

Total credits

5 weeks

Course length

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Take this course on its own, or as part of a degree or certificate program.

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Please Note: Attendance and participation are mandatory in all University courses, and specific requirements may differ by course. If attendance requirements are not met, a student may be removed from the course. Please review the Course Attendance Policy in the Catalog for more information.

University of Phoenix reserves the right to modify courses. While widely available, not all programs are available to residents of all states. Please check with a University Enrollment Representative.

Course level: Upper Division

This course introduces students to the process of critical incident management, encompassing a variety of events that impact justice and security organizations. This course will discuss prevention, planning, and recovery, as well as inter-agency coordination and response.

Please Note: Attendance and participation are mandatory in all University courses, and specific requirements may differ by course. If attendance requirements are not met, a student may be removed from the course. Please review the Course Attendance Policy in the Catalog for more information.

University of Phoenix reserves the right to modify courses. While widely available, not all programs are available to residents of all states. Please check with a University Enrollment Representative.

What you'll learn

Course skills and outcomes

  • Identify distinguishing factors of critical incidents.
  • Describe the different types of critical incidents such as violent crime, natural disasters and acts of terrorism.
  • Compare examples of critical incidents and the associated causes.
  • Analyze and critique the positive and negative outcomes of critical incident responses.

  • Summarize the National Incident Management System (NIMS).
  • Analyze the Incident Command System (ICS) and the various roles and responsibilities.
  • Examine the National Response Framework (NRF).
  • Evaluate the National Infrastructure Protection Plan (NIPP) and the expectations imposed on the private sector.

  • Identify the federal agencies involved with critical incident management and the associated role.
  • Describe the role of state agencies involved with critical incident management.
  • Identify the role of local agencies involved with critical incident management and response.
  • Describe the role of private agencies involved with critical incident management.
  • Explain the benefits and challenges associated with interagency critical incident management.

  • Identify the phases of critical incident management.
  • Evaluate the steps involved with planning and preparing for a critical incident.
  • Examine methods to prevent a critical incident and distinguish between mitigating techniques.
  • Identify challenges associated with a critical incident response.
  • Describe the process of recovering from a critical incident.

  • Evaluate the effectiveness of command structure, resource deployment, and logistics.
  • Assess interagency communication issues at the local, state and federal levels.
  • Explain the chaos factor and the role of the media in critical incident management.
  • Evaluate the relevance and uses of an after-action report.

Why UOPX

Why take courses at University of Phoenix

Accreditation that matters

We’ve been accredited by the Higher Learning Commission (hlcommission.org) for more than 40 years.

Real-world instructors

Learn from instructors who bring an average of 25 years of working experience to the classroom.

Affordable and potentially reimbursable

Our tuition and fees are competitive and fixed. Also, check to see if your employer will cover you for this course.

Next Steps

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Transfer Credits

Credit Transfer

Need to transfer credits to another college or university?

Before you enroll in a course, check with your school of choice to make sure they will accept our transfer credits and to understand any requirements or limitations. Then you can complete your course, and request your official transcript be sent to your school. That’s it!

How to request your transcripts

Transferability of credit is at the discretion of the receiving institution. It is the student’s responsibility to confirm whether or not credits earned at University of Phoenix will be accepted by another institution of the student’s choice. If you have a question contact us at (866) 354-1800.

The University of Phoenix reserves the right to modify courses. Although our continuing teacher education courses are accepted by some state agencies in the United States toward teacher certifications and endorsements, this may not be the case in all states or foreign jurisdictions. If you plan to use courses for certification or endorsement, please check with your own state agency and your school district for applicability. Continuing teacher education courses are not eligible to apply to degree programs at University of Phoenix. These courses are not eligible for federal financial aid. Transferability of credit is at the discretion of the receiving institution. It is the student’s responsibility to confirm whether or not credits earned at University of Phoenix will be accepted by another institution of the student’s choice. While widely available, not all programs are available to residents of all states. Please check with a University Enrollment Representative. If you have a question contact us at (866) 354-1800.