College Aviation Programs

[Friend]

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

 

[LearLove]

While I think the aviation type degree programs are great they do lock the person into one career in aviation for the most part. Unless your last name is Hilton or Kennedy and you (or your kid) can afford to go back to college if they cannot fly (medical DQ) or furloughed then I would recommend getting a degree in something other than aviation. Look to engineering/science or a business BA/BS degree. In high school and during the summers in college send your kid to the local FBO to get his/her PVT, INST, COMM/MEL and CFI.

I started taking lessons in high school and had my comm/mel and cfi by my senior year in college and was building time (CFIing) before I got my degree (outside aviation).

This day in age I would plan on spending 30K for your kids ratings at a local FBO.

 

[pilotyip]

I would recommend getting a degree in something other than aviation. Look to engineering/science or a business BA/BS degree. In high school and during the summers in college send your kid to the local FBO to get his/her PVT, INST, COMM/MEL and CFI.

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?

 

[coffeedog]

I would recommend some form of formal structured training to become a professional pilot. Jets are so much more common in low experience positions than in the past, and anyone flying a modern jet needs to know the aerodynamics of high altitude flight. The FBO patchwork education just doesn’t ensure a comprehensive coverage of this type of essential information. For example clean minimum maneuver speed at 5000’ is not the same as at F390. The FBO education has not proven to be a reliable source for this type of essential information.

As far as a 4yr degree at age 53, a technical degree such as engineering will have become outdated, while a management degree should age more gracefully. I agree that all will become somewhat “stale” in marketability after 30 years of non-use. Perhaps a better backup plan is an education that the student could use directly in their own small business?

 

[deej]

To add my experience to this discussion. I have a Master's Degree in Accounting. A degree I completed while flying for a regional airline full time. Five years at the regional and no upgrade to captain, thus no PIC (in fact, classmate still with the company and a 10 year FO). Flew for a large fractional and then furloughed. I have been looking for an accounting job for 1.5 years with no success, only experience is internship as auditor.
Conclusion, I would not recommend getting an aviation degree, but also an degree in another field while flying has not served me well personally so far.
My recommendation from my personal experience is do not go into aviation.

 

[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.