shaun said:
i am interested in becoming a commerical airline pilot i am in high school still but am looking for a good college to go to i have been looking but had no such luck any good ideas are needed and needed asap
[post="187170"][/post]
You don't have to go to an aviation college to become an airline pilot. In fact, many would tell you to get a degree in something OTHER than aviation so you have something to fall back on if you are one of the unfortunate ones who got hired and then were furloughed during some point in your career. Many pilots do end up getting an aviation degree as that is what they are interested in though. While many do chose to go to a big name school like ERAU (and incur big time debt as well) you can go to a more affordable school and accomplish the same goal. If you want to see a listing of aviation universities to help you find a school, visit the
University Aviation Association.
I recently spoke with a new First Officer who went to ERAU Daytona and they said if they had to do it over again they would not attend ERAU. While they do have a great reputation, you don't graduate with enough flight time to get hired, so you have to work your way up like everyone else who went to a non-aviation school after you graduate. So you basically spend many times over what you would spend at a FBO for your training for the name. I did go to ERAU too, but chose the Extended Campus. I still got to take the curriculum I was interested but did my ratings on the side at a club so they were much more affordable.
In addition, you might get a non-aviation degree and do your training on the side. This is a less expensive route than the big name universities or the academy route. How you are going to finance your education will play a big factor. Are your parents willing to foot an $80K education bill???? If you will be under massive student loans with minimal help, you should consider going the most affordable route. Especially when you consider that as a new hire regional airlimne pilot you will be lucky to make more than $20K to start! Your first few years in this business you can expect to live paycheck to paycheck unless your parents are willing to help or you have a few roomates.
While it is a cool job, there are many things about "living the dream" that are not the same as living the reality of the job. If you do not even have your Private yet, I would highly suggest you get that (and your Instrument rating too) before commiting such major amounts of money to something that you may not actually like as well you think you will. It is not all the glamour most people think it is. Check out my page about
Learning to fly and pilot career FAQs for more information.
A note about the big academy programs- Most are around $70-80K. That is a big investment for an INTERVIEW, not a job offer. My friend just paid a sum to Flight Safety for a 'guaranteed interview' and has been jerked around- no job yet after her 15 minute interview. Meanwhile they have cashed her check. Keep in mind, once you interview, they have fullfilled their obligation. So you may find yourself $80K in debt with no job offer! While academies may work for some, they do not work for others. The do have a hard sell and after a visit to one you will probably leave thinking the are the best thing since sliced bread. If you check into that route, keep off the rosy glasses! I don't think it's just a 'bad attitude' that keeps people from getting a job out of the program...
Here is DCA’s own written word in the magazine ads and website :
"Even in today’s job market, 97% of our graduates are hired as First Officers!*"
The asterisk * small print at the bottom of ads reads:
“* 728 out of 754 students who completed the entire program through August 2003â€. Wow, that is fantastic, don’t you know? DCA has been in business since 1987, which is 16 years. If you divide 728 by that 16 years you only get 45.5 students per year, or 3 students per month on average, that graduate. This means less than 6% of their students make it as First Officers."
It was posted on this DCA thread on FightInfo.com:
http://forums.flightinfo.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=26460 ://http://forums.flightinfo.com/showth...threadid=26460 ://http://forums.flightinfo.com/showth...threadid=26460 ://http://forums.flightinfo.com/showth...threadid=26460 ://http://forums.flightinfo.com/showth...threadid=26460
You should also visit
Jetcareers.com for more info on airline careers.