Q
The gist of my argument is go where the jobs are, don't be stubborn and stay in your local area.
My situation was similar a few years ago:
I had finished my ratings up to CFI at a large FL-flight school right out of highschool, then went back to do a degree, leaving me with summers off to hopefully use my CFI. So, there I was, 19, no dual given, only my CFI, 1 year of college under my belt and looking for only summer work. Not a recipe for job search success!
I looked up the AOPA listings for flight schools by entire states. At first I picked the 2 states closest to me, but eventually widened the search to cover 6 states. I called each one and asked if they had any flight instructor needs; those that did not were crossed off my list; the rest got a CV via fax right away.
I followed up every fax with a phone call to verify its reception and to see if there were any further questions. I'd then get a feel about the school itself, the numbers/nature of the student load and the aircraft they flew. Most said they'd get back to me (ie - no thanks), while a few were enthusiastic.
For those that showed enthusiasm, I decided to visit personally and meet the people. So I packed up the car for a weekend and drove about 17 hours visiting 6 flight schools. Each one except one (where the chief CFI was sick) had great discussion and were all very positive. Upon my return home, I had 3 job offers: one that wanted me right away, one that wanted me right away but who needed my to buy my own CFI insurance and one that wanted to do trial flight before offering me a job. Based on this and my general vibes about the personalities and business from my visits, I chose the one that offered my the job right away (a busy, but laid back part 61 school on a grass strip - a far cry from my p141 former FL school!)
So I worked at that flight school during my freshman summer, getting about 230 hours over approx. 3 months. It was an awesome experience, the location has become a comfortable 2nd home, and I'm going back for my 3rd summer there next week. The ownership of the place has changed hands, but I'm well known in the local flying scene just because I keep coming back and generate extra summer revenue. Sure, it's frustrating to have to give away all your students come September, but there are always new ones.
Anyway, the long and short of the story, as I mentioned in my disclaimer, is that there are jobs out ther RIGHT NOW if you are willing to go find them. During the initial search, I called EVERY flight school in ME, NH, VT, MA and about half of NY, then sent about 40 CVs, then made about 20-25 calls and then 6 visits. Be politely persistent. Sure, I live 10 hours from home when I CFI for the summer, but in aviation, we rarely have the luxury of living "at home". The solution is simple: go where there is a job and make that place your "new home". Also, don't be afraid to try out smaller or unfamiliar types of operations - flight hours are flight hours, regardless of whether or not the school has 3 dispatchers and 24 aircraft or 2 aircraft and a 16 year old manning the phones. The way I see if, by the time I retire from aviation, I'll have lived in 20+ cities, so just resign yourself to that fate and have fun building those hours, wherever they may be!
Good luck!
Sorry to ramble, I *think* there's a message in there somewhere
