Which route to take?

Jepoy005

Jepoy005

Well-Known Member
Hey guys im a senior in high school and i am passionate about getting a career in aviation. I wanted to become a professional pilot since i was a kid.

I am also tight on the budget. I will need to loan out money to do flight training. My guestimate would be for the next 4-6 years the airline economy would bounce right back.

Here are my routes:

4 Year College Degree = $40,000+ plus Flight Training = $65,000 == Total = $105,000. Again i'm tight on budget and i'm kinda not willing and dedicated to do this route.

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4 Year Aviation Degree (KSTATE) = $70,000. This route kind of grabs me and willing to do this but one main problem about this is, what if i don't find a good job to pay for the monthly price. Well then i'm screwed.:insane::insane:

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Reason why i wanted to get my Bachelors Degree is because I wanted to get hired by the MAJORS in the long run. We know how competitive and hard it is to get hired by the Majors. Most of their pilots came from the military or Veteran Regional Captain.

I would take any kind of flying job. I would prefer flying than instructing. So I would rather fly like a madman without resting and just get a paycheck....:crazy::crazy:

So guys please help me out...

Tnx
 
I think this thread needs to be moved to the General Discussion area.

Anyway - you would still get a variety of answers to your questions. Personally - I would get the degree in the cheapest way possible, and in something other than aviation (whatever interests you - business, math etc). Do the flying on the side at a FBO over the course of time!

Hope this helps!
 
Join the Air Force/Navy/Coast Guard/NOAA. They pay for college, they pay for flight training, and they pay you while you are doing both.

Or, worry about getting a degree first, and fly as you can afford it. It ain't a race.
 
Very good advice...get your degree fly as much as you can..I was once in your shoes bud..but i must ask if instructing is not flying than what is it:) You would be surprised with the amount of stuff you learn while teaching others how to fly.. Its a great way to start off your aviation career, if your not going the military route. Good Luck to you bud and please for me ENJOY college because i wanna go back, ill live through you:)
 
drunkenbeagle said:
Join the Air Force/Navy/Coast Guard/NOAA. They pay for college, they pay for flight training, and they pay you while you are doing both.

Or, worry about getting a degree first, and fly as you can afford it. It ain't a race.
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No I can't get to the Air Force Academy bcuz my ACT isn't that high enough ( i got a 22).... tnx for the advice..
 
highalt41 said:
Very good advice...get your degree fly as much as you can..I was once in your shoes bud..but i must ask if instructing is not flying than what is it:) You would be surprised with the amount of stuff you learn while teaching others how to fly.. Its a great way to start off your aviation career, if your not going the military route. Good Luck to you bud and please for me ENJOY college because i wanna go back, ill live through you:)
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Well the reason i would prefer flying than instructing is because i believe that it would get me to a better paying airline faster and build more hours faster....

Im not going to the military route just bcuz i dont have a high ACT score.... I got 22 on it.... I would enjoy college for you sir.... lol...... Many of my friends say, they wish they could always be 21 yrs old.. lol
 
Jepoy005 said:
Well the reason i would prefer flying than instructing is because i believe that it would get me to a better paying airline faster and build more hours faster....

Im not going to the military route just bcuz i dont have a high ACT score.... I got 22 on it.... I would enjoy college for you sir.... lol...... Many of my friends say, they wish they could always be 21 yrs old.. lol
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If you want to be a military pilot, you can go ROTC...the Academy is not the only way. Also, just to let you know, 'txtspeak' is generally looked down upon around here (bcuz-because, etc) :)
 
SLOW DOWN A TAD HERE!! honestly, your just starting out ... dont make your mind up that you "wont instruct", right now you dont even know what you dont know yet. How else are you going to get 5-8 hours a day of flying with no time and NOT instruct. How are you going to build multi hours if you dont instruct. NOBODY is going to pay you to fly a twin if you dont have any hours in them (insurance wont allow it)! Yes, I know that there are exceptions to every rule, but get your ratings first and see if this is something that you want to do for a living. I'm not sure if you have your PVT yet, but get that "while" you are going to school. This will help you decide if this is a path you want to go down.
Also, think of this, when you become a "capt" in that big fancy airline jet, or you are a high time FO, and you are pared with a new FO, or Capt, what do you think you will be doing to some extent. . . Training him/her. Flight instructing teaches you not only how to fly better as a pilot, build time on someone elses dime, but also teaches you how to be a true "PIC" how to be responsible for a flight from the start to the finish and how to work with a multitude of other pilots.

On another note, $65,000 seems a bit high . . . $40,000 should be more than enough, of course a lot depends on where you are training. Go to a FBO, you'll spend less in the long run! Get in there this summer and try to knock that PVT out! You can also look into online colleges like Utah Valley State with there aviation department. Or go to a community college for your first two years while also getting your ratings. Then maybe you can instruct your last two years, or banner tow or something to help offset your last few years of college while your building hours.

Remember, there are 10,000 ways that ALL lead to the same right seat job!!!!!
 
Look into Platoon Leaders Course for the Marine Corps! You meet the ACT requirement with them and you can get a flight contract as soon as you pass the ASTB and flight physical! They don't guarantee you a certain platform, but they do guarantee you a seat in flight school! I hope this helps. I am currently doing PLC and it is truly the best program the military has to offer. (IMO) It gives you the flexibility you need to make decisions rather than being "locked" into ROTC.
 
Do you want to go to the military? If so, there are other ways than the Academy. All branches of the military have some form of aviation. If you don't want to go to the military, no one will blame you. There are a few wars going on!

Go to an FBO and start working towards your private cert. (I am assuming you haven't already done this). You can fly while you are still in high school.

I would second jerry saying go to a community college. As long as you finish the Associate degree you can transfer all your credits to a 4 year school (in most cases). This will save a bunch of money, but you may loose out on the "college experience" so many here will talk about. AND you can use that money to continue your training on the side at an FBO.

Lastly, set goals for yourself. Start out small. "I want to become an instructor." Than move to "I want to meet 135 PIC requirements" or "I want to meet minimum regional FO requirements." Don't start out saying "I want to be a captain for a major 121 airline" cause throughout the time building process your overall career goals may change. When I started out I too thought I wanted the 121 major career, now I couldn't want anything less. The more you learn and the more flying of different types you do will change your overall goals.
 
sunny441 said:
Personally - I would get the degree in the cheapest way possible, and in something other than aviation (whatever interests you - business, math etc). Do the flying on the side at a FBO over the course of time!
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Yeah, that. If I had to do it all over again, I would have finished my accounting degree first. You just need to be creative on how to get funds for flying when you aren't taking them for course credit. (AKA you won't get any financial help from the school if you aren't taking the flight labs for credit)
 
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