Does anybody get hired thru AEPS?

[airline mission]

I was thinking of forking over the bucks for the AEPS online database, but I thought I'd ask here if anyone has really gotten a job as a result of posting on that site. What do you think of the site? Worth it?

 

[flyby]

Overall I wouldn't bother with them. I am a member and haven't seen too any jobs that I couldn't find elsewhere. They have a lot of leads if you want to be a CFI or do some contract 727 flying somewhere. Oh I think I saw one for a C5 instructor too.

The hitch with them is that some companies do their hiring exclusively through aeps meaning you need to be a member or presumably you couldn't get hired. You get a discount at the job fairs and magazine once a month or so.

If you have the money and need the piece of mind that the world isn't passing you by then join. Otherwise you'd probably stand as good of a chance at getting employed if you comb the internet.

good luck

 

[flydog]

I once got a job through an AEPS ad but eventually it turned into PFT and I left.

Just a quck statistic on AEPS:

according to their web site they have 83,714 enrollment forms

In the last 30 days they posted 71 jobs

Basically that works out to 1179 applicants per job posting. Not a very good ratio


Most of the posted jobs can be found by searching company web sites. As a general rule of thumb most of the pay classifieds for jobs are fairly useless. In the corporate world most job leads are through friends and word of mouth. As far as airlines you can check out their web sites for hiring info. I think its funny when AEPS posts ads for Comair, ACA, etc. I doubt Comair is paying for ads when their fax machines are probably running out of paper every 10 minutes

At my current flight department they do not advertise at all for pilots and they have over 1500 resumes on file. My guess is most pilots know how to use a phone book

 

[FlightTraker]

I got my current job through AEPS. That was over a year ago before there were 80,000 or so people enrolled. I still think I would have had a better chance of getting hit by lighting. I have been a member for about two years and have only had a handful of responses for flying. I also am listed as a dispatcher, and used to get a phone call just about every week (before I changed my preferred job to Pilot from Dispatcher with AEPS) I would guess that right now thousands of applicants are applying to each job posted, so you make the call.

 

[UAL727]

Airline Mission:

I am a member of AEPS, haven't landed a job yet.. Neither have any of my friends..

Also applied to Climbto350..got two phone calls on that web list and its cheaper..

Just my thoughts..

 

[Caveman]

I got my present job through AEPS but indirectly. I was enrolled with them for about 6 months while I was looking for a better job. It did lead to two interviews and two job offers, both of which I turned down. One was flying a Lear for an on-demand freight company and the other was as a Chief Flight Instructor. About a year after I ended my subscription I got a call from a Comair recruiter. My resume was still in the AEPS database and my name popped out during one of their screenings. The rest as they say is history.

I'm not crazy about AEPS but they are a **CENSORED****CENSORED****CENSORED****CENSORED**ed sight cheaper and better than UPAS or Air Inc. For about $10 bucks a month you get access to some pretty good info. I agree with the above posters that there really isn't anything on AEPS that can't be had for free off the internet with a little work. Some of their job postings are exclusive to them but other employment sites have exclusive info as well. Would I pony up the $10 bucks again? Probably, but mainly because it's only $10 bucks. Any more than that and I'd probably take a pass.

 

[publisher]

Point

While connected to AEPS, there is a bunch of common misconceptions about this site and the others as well/

1. 1.3 of all searches of AEPS are stealth in nature with the employer not wanting to advertise the position. They are there to search and when they narrow it down, they contact less than 5 people.

2. You would be wrong about Comair and ACA. First of all, companies can search to their hearts content for FREE. Comair is a big AEPS supporter as are most of the regionals. They all advertise in the magazine for which they do pay. They also pay for job fairs. They do have tons of resumes, a majority of which are dead zone material.

3. I am competitive. You probably are not. At a job fair, a young woman with impressive credentials was in the Delta line. She had double their minimums. I bet her that at least half of the next 10 people in front of her had better times. Actually 7 did.

4. I did a good job of filling out the information. Wrong. The fact is that many of the profiles include terrible mistakes.

5. I can find these if I check all the web sites. Yes many. Let's see, I can check the 4000 resumes that came through the door, or I can put in a few numbers into my computer and see if I can find the people in the FREE database. UMH! let me think about that.

6. All of these are the same. Let's see, Climbto350 has less than 1000 members, I am being generous. Yep I would go there first.

7. AEPS powers 30 some sites now,. many without any apparent AEPS connection. I do not need a job from any of them, whoever they are.

8. Why pay that massive $10 a month for a yearly. They are taking advantage of us poor pilots. Gag me.

9. Next week, AEPS is having a job fair with 10 companies in attendance who are paying to be there. Why don't you go to the climbto350 jobfair or avjobs.

10 if you are going to be in this business, understand it.

 

[Ty Webb]

Once again, "Publisher" demostrates his animosity toward the very pilot group he pretends to serve.

He claims to understand the industry, yet he is clearly just a frustrated wanna-bee working as a hack, pimping his "Come be a PILOT" crap to the detriment of the industry.

To the guy who asked about AEPS- don't waste your money. The jobs posted there are all available elsewhere.

As far as airline jobs go- the only reason for an airline to use someplace like AEPS is to find people already rated in their equipment, and the quality companies have no shortage of applicants right now.

Try http://raa.org and access their membership directory. You'll find plenty of info on 121 and 135 companies including fleet, bases, contact people, etc.

Good luck

 

[publisher]

Nice

The nice thing is that I have Ty and Flydog to keep me straight on how things really are.

Let me make one thing clear, I never ever wanted to be a commercial aircraft pilot. Not my cup of tea, I would prefer to own what I fly.

Secondly, the amount of bad information out there is amazing.

Third, I have hired a bunch of pilots, talk to recruiters most of every day, and am trying to be helpful to those who do not know everything.

AEPS would not last 5 minutes if it was not the fact that companies use it. It is designed for them and is free to them.

Is it the only way to get a job in this business,,,,no.

Is it easier for a recruiter to use than go look for your out od date resume the day they need to put a class together, maybe.

People on this board come for information and you guys are letting your sense of anger over something warp what is simple. If there is any chance I can find a job through here, for a lousy $100plus a year, I should be in.

 

[Abe Froman]

Airline Mission,

I think the question you need to ask is "Will joining AEPS help me get a job?" The answer is probably not. There are to many highly qualified pilots going after a few openings

I was a member of AEPS back during the hiring boom and did not get one phone call directly attributed to my AEPS membership. Most of the phone calls that did come were the result of networking. It is the best method available.

If you want to invest in your future, take the money you would be sending to AEPS and invest in a mutual fund.

Publisher has a vested interest in you signing on. He wants your money. I wasted enough of mine and they will see no more.

Good luck

Abe

 

[publisher]

Abe

Abe,

For a corporate job, you are absolutely right.

For an airlne job, sometimes you are right.

If you knew me at all, you would know I have little vested interest.

Is it competitive, absolutely.

Me, I would rather marry the bosses daughter, hold the owners pet hostage, etc.

I know there are at least 15 people who got their jobs through AEPS. They are featured in the magazine.

I personnally think you should"
Network
Send resumes to every company you are interested in.
Go to the library and find out as much as you can.
Visit web sites.
Join the top 5 sites for jobs and information
Go to as many companies as you physically can.
Write letters
Call
Check interview gouge
Talk to people at the companies
Go to every job fair you can get to.
Redo all the above.
Get rec letters
Ask Advice.

If you did not get a call, you were not competitive in a very competitive world/ networking ususally does not solve that

 

[flydog]

Just to remind you Publisher in my post I stated I did once get a job through AEPS. However I think it is difficult in this environment for that type of service to be helpful in finding a job

My advice:

If you dont mind spending the $10 and you have the money subscribe to AEPS. The odds are low but someone has to win

If money is a problem and you need it to buy food AEPS is not going to make those problems go away


My personal peeve with AEPS is their Aviaton Carreers magazine full of PFT ads and propaganda. That is a huge waste of money that is better spent on other things even on their job service

 

[Caveman]

Man you guys are harsh. Like I said before I have had three job offers as a direct result of my AEPS membership, but I wouldn't recommend relying exclusively on AEPS to find a job. Use it as you would any other resource in your arsenal. You still have to mail resumes, make phonecalls, network, etc. If nothing else AEPS is legit. There are actual jobs available on the website. They do have employers screening their database for candidates on a regular basis. Pilots have found work using AEPS as one of their many resources. It won't do the interview for you but it is a viable, legitimate product. It's just not the panacea for finding you a job. Besides, most of you guys spend more than $10 bucks a month on comic books. Here's an idea, instead of spending $50-$60 bucks on a fancy silk corporate looking tie for your still hypothetical interview, spend $20 on a reasonable tie and $30 for a three month enrolment and save the rest for beer. You'll be much further ahead in your job search.

 

[publisher]

Flydog

I know you will never forgive us for that one Gulfstream ad and the fact they were in the South Florida issue.

On your other point, I would contend that it is exactly in times like this that these services are more valuable. Mainly because the obvious, read major airlines, are not hiring, but, some of the less obvious are.

I had to dig up a number of CASA pilots once for a little deal down south of the border. These services would have been invaluable in helping us find those pilots much quicker and efficiently.

One of my new advertisers actually found us when they used the service to hire a couple of mechanics.

I think we are agreed that you need to do a bunch of different things if you want to find a job.

 

[FlightTraker]

To add to my post above. I just landed an interview through AEPS for a Citation co-pilot. I hope this one works out.

FlightTraker

 

[Ty Webb]

Most AEPS jobs are listed other places on the web, though, and, in my experience, companies that have to advertise for entry-level pilot positions in this job market usually have high turnover, and for a reason.

Let us know how it goes.