Another New Person

[Cessna_Chick]

Hi all!

I’m new to the board and interested in becoming a dispatcher. I’ve been reading a bunch of past posts to try to get all the information I can, and to try to avoid being redundant in this post. Obviously, I have a few questions, but first a bit about myself. My current background is in theatre, so not too applicable, oh well. But I recently earned my PPL at the end of October. I’m also dating a regional airline pilot, who is the one introduced me to the aviation world and, probably sadly for him, can’t get me uninterested.

Anyway, I have already started studying. First off, just reading Air Carrier Operations to get more familiar with Part 121 operations for some background. I plan on starting to tackle the ATP Written Exam guide by Gleim soon and reading through the Aircraft Dispatcher Oral Exam Guide. I’ll use Sheppard Air for the ADX written which I plan on taking before going to class.

Due to work I’ve already committed to, I won’t be able to enroll anywhere until late March. I’m still up in the air where to go. I’m between Flight Safety, AGS, Sheffield, and Jeppesen, but I may end up looking at other schools too. I’m trying to decide if a distance learning would be the right choice for me. But I’ve read a lot of the boards on here about school opinions (which has actually just confused me more) so won’t ask opinions again!

I’m just more worried about getting resume help since in my current industry resumes are completely different, so I’d love to know if people got help at their school with resumes?

Luckily, due to dating a pilot, we have flexibility where we live, but would love to find a job in one of his bases so he wouldn’t have to commute. I know one of us will end up commuting at some point, most likely it will be him – I also know people’s strong opinions on here about commuting too.

Is it possible to shadow dispatchers? I’ve heard it mentioned, but don’t know how to go about doing it. We live near JetBlue’s headquarters, but not sure if they would allow it.

Thanks in advance, and hopefully will be able to join your ranks soon enough.

 

[MT]

Welcome!

I love your enthusiasm to get into the field, however I would caution you on all the early ADX prep. Having little background, you run the risk of confusing yourself and actually making the ADX harder than it needs to be. Your school will provide you with study material prior to the class or at the latest on day one of class. Also note that the test is only good for 2 years once you pass, so you don't want to take it too early. Most of the schools include the ADX test in your tuition anyways so you don't really want to double pay for the test.

Having no previous aviation background other than a recent PPL, I would advise against any type of distance learning. Other than Academy College and the Flight Safety night program, you're looking at about 6-7 weeks in residence to get that dispatch license, I would do everything possible to save for being away that long. I've seen too many people fail distance learning courses.

As far as schools go, don't be confused. You need to go to the one that best suits your situation and goals. All of us here have a loyalty to our alma mater and think it's the best thing since sliced bread. That being said, Sheffield indeed earned their reputation and have a valid claim that they are the best school. As part of the hiring team in a previous life, I can tell you that airlines do like Sheffield grads.

Jeppesen is not too far behind Sheffield in terms of quality and reputation. IFOD rounds out the top three, but they do not teach some things that airlines will ask you in an interview. They prepare you for the FAA and not much more. The other schools are indeed certified and you can use those ones if that what works best for you. Being from New York, I'm sure FlightSafety looks tempting. This is the only school I would advise against. I've seen too many poor dispatchers come out of there. Great dispatchers can and do come out of all schools so if it works best for you, then it works best for you.

As far as shadowing goes, It's indeed possible. You just need to know the right people, cross your I's and dot your T's. Perhaps someone else on the board may be able to help you with that via PM.

Hope this helps!

 

[Flagship_dxer]

If your regional pilot boyfriend is well connected enough, he can likely help you get an interview at the airline he works at. Typically but not always an airline has its SOC/OCC in one of their domicile cities.

As far as regionals go, you are looking at ATL for ExpressJet, SGU for Skywest, ATW for Air Wisky, DAY for PSA, SBY for Piedmont, MSP for Pinnacle, DFW for American Eagle, STL for GoJet/Trans States, CLE for Commutair, Compass in MSP and Mesa in PHX.

PSA, Skywest, Compass and Mesa will likely see some growth and probably hiring a lot soon. GoJet and Pinnacle are almost always hiring and seem to hire a lot of newly minted dispatchers.

I honestly dont recommend shadowing a dispatcher. Depending on the day you choose, the office you choose to visit, you might get scared away from dispatch. When bad weather and maintenance occurs, it can get rather busy in dispatch. If the weather is good, the job may look easier than what it actually is. Its really a job you have to do on a regular basis to see if its for you or not.

Get your license wherever it is the cheapest for you. Airlines for the most part dont really care where you got your license. They all hire graduates from pretty much every dispatch school. No matter where you get your license, every airline has their own way of doing things and will train you how they dispatch flights.

 

[manniax]

There are various options for resumes - I got professional help once on mine, and have tweaked it myself since then. I do know one person who is a professional writer that does them on the side - if you need their contact info let me know. Or your boyfriend may have some good advice although a dispatcher resume is definitely different than a pilot one. At any rate, whatever you decide to pursue, best of luck with your studies!

 

[womanpilot73]

I honestly dont recommend shadowing a dispatcher. Depending on the day you choose, the office you choose to visit, you might get scared away from dispatch. When bad weather and maintenance occurs, it can get rather busy in dispatch. If the weather is good, the job may look easier than what it actually is. Its really a job you have to do on a regular basis to see if its for you or not.

I actually did shadow a dispatcher and toured an SOC before making the decision to take the plunge and get my license. I am no spring chicken, so a career change was scary and I wanted to see it in person before committing to it.

Although that day was sort of slow, and there were no major wx or mx issues, it was still a great experience for me. There was time for the lead dispatcher to really talk to me and walk me through what the job is on a day to day basis. I learned a lot and for me, it was a great experience. It also helped me make my decision to move forward.

Welcome to the forum, btw... You'll get a lot of great advice here. My experience has been that there's a lot of awesome people on here and they are always willing to help. Whatever you decide, just do what is best and right for you.

Best of luck!

 

[pljenkins]

I certainly think it is worthwhile to visit a dispatch center and sit in if you can pull it off. If for no other reason then to ask questions and get the feel for what day to day life is like on the floor.

 

[dispatchguy]

Most definitely visit an SOC. I was living in sin in the MSP area in the mid 90s and got to visit the NWA SOC over by the cemetery many times. Learned a lot as to how an airline operates. Good day or bad, you;ll get a lot out of the visit. If he can swing it, see if he can get you into his carriers SOC. A regional is more than likely where you would start, and it would give you an idea as to if this is truly what you want. Preclear it first - they could prefer you sat with a supervisor, a check dispatcher, or someone with a little more experience than someone with not much more experience than yourself.

And carriers could care less where you got your ticket.

 

[BayouMLU]

I have 17 years in commercial aviation and I can't imagine passing the written without the two weeks of prep I received at IFOD. It was the most difficult exam I have ever taken. They did assist with resume building those who needed it. Get the boyfriend to arrange a day in SOC. It's good for anyone to experience regardless of whether or not they want to work there.

 

[Cessna_Chick]

I've been lurking here since this post and never responded, oops. So I ended up going with AGS and I leave in a week and a half to go finish up and get my license. I just took my written today (with the help of Sheppard Air) and scored a 95%. I'm feeling relieved to have that out of the way. Did anyone ever have 10 validation questions on their exams? I thought that was way too many and stressed me out, even though I was pretty certain which ones were and were not validation questions.
I've already finished the online portion of the exam and now it's just more studying and making sure I know my weaknesses. Lurking has helped and on another thread found a great lady to help with my resume, she did an awesome job. I submitted it to one place, but I do feel awkward applying without being able to scan in my certificate if needed, but that isn't an issue since it seems like others have applied a lot of places while still in school?
Also, one question I've come up with is how often do regionals hire new dispatchers? I feel like I've just missed a lot of different regionals hiring and am afraid I'll have to wait awhile for them to hire again to apply.

 

[BayouMLU]

Congrats! When are you taking the oral?

I have every regional carrier, mainline carrier, part 135 carrier, cargo carrier, etc not in Alaska bookmarked and I check their jobs pages every couple of days. I check here as well as people often post when hiring is about to take place. I also recommend getting your online presence in order, too because recruiters will search for you. You should control what they find the best you can.

 

[BruinsFan]

I've been lurking here since this post and never responded, oops. So I ended up going with AGS and I leave in a week and a half to go finish up and get my license. I just took my written today (with the help of Sheppard Air) and scored a 95%. I'm feeling relieved to have that out of the way. Did anyone ever have 10 validation questions on their exams? I thought that was way too many and stressed me out, even though I was pretty certain which ones were and were not validation questions.
I've already finished the online portion of the exam and now it's just more studying and making sure I know my weaknesses. Lurking has helped and on another thread found a great lady to help with my resume, she did an awesome job. I submitted it to one place, but I do feel awkward applying without being able to scan in my certificate if needed, but that isn't an issue since it seems like others have applied a lot of places while still in school?
Also, one question I've come up with is how often do regionals hire new dispatchers? I feel like I've just missed a lot of different regionals hiring and am afraid I'll have to wait awhile for them to hire again to apply.

It depends on the regional, and right now the regional world is the toughest to get a read on. One thing that will help new dispatchers out is the amount of hiring going on at the Majors right now. Every Major has hired in the past year, and likely will hire again going forward. A lot of these dispatchers are coming from the regional airlines, which is freeing up dispatch spots there. I was fortunate to be able to move up to a Major a couple of months ago from a Regional, and my spot was filled pretty quickly, so there is competition out there. Here is the risk though. Pilots at the Regionals are also moving up, and the regional airlines are having difficulty replacing them. This could lead to downsizing of some carriers or growth at others depending on the contract that regional has with the major.

To go a step further, there is talk that SkyWest may shift more flying from Expressjet to SkyWest and wind down Expressjet due to the pilots rejecting the T/A. American is doing the same thing with Envoy. So it is not clear where these carriers are going to be in the future. Likewise, Air Wisconsins agreement with USAirways expires next year, and though it could be partially extended two years, nobody really knows what is going on after that, and right now pilots are leaving in droves for better opportunities.

Definitely don't be too picky about a regional though. It is still 121 experience, and that is a great thing.

 

[Cessna_Chick]

Congrats! When are you taking the oral?

I have every regional carrier, mainline carrier, part 135 carrier, cargo carrier, etc not in Alaska bookmarked and I check their jobs pages every couple of days. I check here as well as people often post when hiring is about to take place. I also recommend getting your online presence in order, too because recruiters will search for you. You should control what they find the best you can.

Sometime between July 4-6, so just studying all the time.

I have all the regionals bookmarked and I check them, I also get alerts from simplyhired.com as well. I've checked the FAQ board for a better list of Part 135 carriers to apply to but just regionals and majors/cargo were listed. Any good way to find a list of those?

 

[BayouMLU]

Wikipedia.

 

[BayouMLU]

I think I came across a PDF when searching for part 121 and part 135 carriers. There are defunct airlines still listed, but there are about four pages to get you started.

 

[pljenkins]

When I was building my list I used Wikipedia. Just go through the list and read up on the companies. If they seem interesting then go to their company website and bookmark them.

 

[MAK49]

Another new guy here (though I've been lurking for quite some time)...Just thought I'd add how I've been finding airlines to bookmark their sites.

I first used Wikipedia, mainly for the main carriers (major, regional, cargo, etc). Then I recently stumbled onto the FAA list of certified air carriers. So I've been going through that list, where I use another website (can't remember what it is, not near my computer to check) which tells me whether it's Part 121, 135, 91 and so on. It also gives you a break down of how many employees, such as pilots, MX, or dispatchers they have.

From there I search for their website and see if they have a careers portal and bookmark it. I've got about a month left of school so I figured I need to get the ball rolling.

 

[z987k]

Wikipedia.

There's a crazy amount of 135 and 125 and 91k certificates out there. 1000's.
avainfo.faa.gov/OpCert.asp?SrchBy=Location