College Aviation Programs

[Flynfish]

Metro State in Denver, great program, train on your own, get a BS degree, get an airline job, make Captain, make millions.

 

[CorpCaptain]

My son is a senior in high school and is interested in aviation as a career. What college options are out there where he could get a degree and ratings? I know Embry Riddle, but that's too expensive.

Should he go to college anywhere and work on ratings on the side?

Not sure if this recommendation has been thrown out, but why not have him work at a FBO to start the appropriate ratings while attending a community college to take care of his core curriculum?? After 2 yrs have him transfer. Hopefully with atleast his Instrument/Multi Comm.
Side Note*
I am a graduate of ERAU Daytona and job-wise they didnt help me at all right after graduation. However in the last 2 years, I have had 4 Fortune 50 interviews all of which are staffed entirely with ERAU alum. Aviation is a small world and any inside track you may have could be the difference when it comes down that a career position he is striving for. Good luck and let us know what he decides on!
Corp

 

[hockeypilot44]

The fall back value of a college degree is greatly over rated. I have a BS and a Master's in Management, but at age 53, I was making $250/wk loading cargo. After Zantop pretended to go out of went out of business in 1997, I had been a temporary High School Chemistry Teacher up until two weeks before the cargo job came along. However, they do not teach school in the summer so I had to take the cargo job. The value of an unused degree is highly over rated. 53 year old unemployed airline pilots are not eagerly greeted in any industry that I know of, even of having a couple degrees. Of course, I did not apply for many of the "College degree preferred jobs" such as apt manager, telephone direct sales, and plumping floor manager at Home Depot, etc. If you get a college degree you have to use, the knowledge gained in college to develop a career or the degree is useless. After getting a degree, flying an airplane is not a knowledge expanding experience; it is skill development experience. Anyone care to chime in and share their experiences on entering the non-aviation job market after being out of college 20-30 years?

I'm surprised that you have a Master's degree given how hard you preach that a degree is not required in aviation.

 

[pilotyip]

I'm surprised that you have a Master's degree given how hard you preach that a degree is not required in aviation.

no my point is it has nothing to do with flying an airplane, I have flown with too many college grads and non-college grads, there is no diffference.

 

[hockeypilot44]

no my point is it has nothing to do with flying an airplane, I have flown with too many college grads and non-college grads, there is no diffference.

You might be right, but I would still be flying for a regional right now without my degree. No matter how much you think a degree is unnecessary for our job, most majors will not hire you without one. That is what matters.

 

[pilotyip]

No matter how much you think a degree is unnecessary for our job, most majors will not hire you without one. That is what matters.

I agree, but it is not needed until the last step in your career. Much better off doing it on line, make money build time while completing your degree. Of course this assumes a pilot has the discipline to work and do the on-line degree at the same time.

 

[tomcat]

Southeastern oklahoma state university best value for your dollar
www.se.edu. DURANT, OK 74701

There, should be an "e". Mo betta info at aviation.se.edu (no www. before).

 

[tailwindz]

ERAU (and some of the other Aviation Universities) There is NO substitute for the quality of the pilot education. Period. It is obvious in the first few minutes with every FO I have ever flown with if he went to Riddle or one of the other top aviation schools.

That being said, there certainly are other means to the same end. If you want to accelerate both his flying time and a college education find an acceptable college that is co located where there is an ALLATPS. If he his motivated, he should be able to be an instructor at ATP well before he graduates from college.

Problem. If his flight time outpaces his college, which it will at ALLATP, he may abandon the college for a commuter job. The lure of Jet-A.

Yes, I graduated from ERAU, but I also helped build the ALLATPS pro pilot program.