ERAU CFI Position Revisited

[Inconceivable]

My wife is thinking about applying for a CFI slot at DAB largely for the tuition benefits.

I was wondering if anyone could shed some light on the hiring process and timeframes. What I got off their site:

The hiring process consists of:
Online Application / Written Exam / Interview
Instructional Competency Evaluation / Simulator Evaluation / Flight Evaluation
Standardization / Final Acceptance Flight

A breakdown of when these events occur and when income begins would be most appreciated--as well as any comments about life working there.

Thanks!

 

[unreal]

My wife is thinking about applying for a CFI slot at DAB largely for the tuition benefits.

I was wondering if anyone could shed some light on the hiring process and timeframes. What I got off their site:

The hiring process consists of:
Online Application / Written Exam / Interview
Instructional Competency Evaluation / Simulator Evaluation / Flight Evaluation
Standardization / Final Acceptance Flight

A breakdown of when these events occur and when income begins would be most appreciated--as well as any comments about life working there.

Thanks!

A lot of posting going on about ERAU recently, it seems! I work at the Prescott, AZ, so I'm not sure how accurate the process is compared to DAB.

-I submitted my online application on 4/18/06 along with a resume and cover letter.

-On 5/05/06, I got a call from the interview coordinator for an interview in PRC on 5/19/06.

-Went to the interview on 5/19 and it was split up into four parts: Technical/HR, flight, written, and a sim eval. The technical/HR was about an hour long and dealt with basic aerodynamics (i.e. "why do we have a rudder?"), along with some questions on instrument rules of thumb. I think I had to brief an approach too.

The flight was very basic. I taught a normal takeoff, then went out to the practice area and taught slowflight and a power-off stall, if I recall correctly. We came back and I taught a normal landing. The flight was a 1.0 I think. I was very rusty, but it didn't seem to matter.

We got done a bit early, so I took an hour and a half lunch break before the written exam. The written was pretty tough, and took the entire 1-1/2 hours that they alotted for it. Lots of questions on endorsements (i.e. "Write out all endorsements that need to be given to a student pilot to make a solo flight from PRC to PHX.") Lots of weight and balance questions too.

After that, it was into the sim. The sim consisted of a hold, followed by the ILS 21L full procedure into PRC. I think I taught some BAI in the process. Nothing partial panel, and no emergencies. I thought I'd done terribly the rest of the day, but felt like I'd done well in the sim (as it turns out, everyone else that had interviewed felt the same way).

Overall, yes, a very thorough and somewhat ridiculous interview for a simple CFI job, but hey, it's not terrible. It took about 6 hours start to finish, but I think it was more of a personality test and how you'd handle prolonged stress more than anything. Just play their game and it's not hard.

I was told that it'd be a week before I'd get word on if I was to be hired. They told me that there would be three alternatives: 1) I wouldn't be hired, 2) I'd be put in the hiring pool and would compete with everyone else in the pool for a spot in the new-hire class, or 3) I'd be invited to the class with a guaranteed date.

-On 5/26/06, I got the call that I was given a guaranteed spot in the next new-hire class, which was to be held on 8/07/06.

-Basically waited tables the rest of the summer until my class date. I moved to Prescott from the LA area on 6/16/06.

-Started new-hire on 8/07, which knocked quite a bit of rust off of me (I hadn't flown much in the 2 years prior to starting training). I passed my Part 142 checkride (and thus was "hired") on 8/29/06. My first paycheck was on 9/14/06. For whatever reason, ERAU doesn't pay you for training anymore, so save up some cash if you need to.

A good overview of working conditions can be found in the thread titled "Good flight schools to instruct at...." in this forum. Was the whole process worth it? Maybe. It's not perfect, but it's a very good place to work, and they give you good perks. Their safety program and maintanence are top-notch. Their internal safety program is much like the ASRS program, so if you screw up and file a hazard report on what happened, you're free from any kind of punitive action assuming that it wasn't criminal or due to gross negligence. That is a very nice thing to have.

Anyway, I hope that gives you a good timeline of events.