Hi

[bobbysamd]

College degree

If you want to be a pilot fly airplanes all else is BS. Don't get caught up in the college degree thing.

Irresponsible advice to give a 15-year-old, Yip.

Go to college and earn your degree. You need an education, and doors will slam in your face if you don't have a degree. You can go to an aviation college and earn a degree or ratings, or push through college via summer school and finish in three years or less. Whatever you do, get that degree. It will serve you the rest of your life.

 

[pilotyip]

How about the Army?

Would it also be irresponsibile to tell him to look into the Army's High School to Flight School program? If a guy wants to be a professional pilot, that is one the best deals going. Is a 28 year old Spirit MD-80 F/O a poor job in avaition because the pilot does not have a degree. It is a doable career path. Might it not also be irresponsible to encourage a student to go to college who is not ready for college.

 

[Swede]

Colby, what I admire about you and any other teen here is that you have a passion... you are interested in a responsible, adult activity like aviation, and are pursuing it.

Keep something in mind when you hear negativity about the profession - I'll freely admit I've contributed my share - even if you are never paid one lousy dime to fly, you can always pursue flying as a wonderful, I'll even say magical activity for your whole life, as a hobby.

Even as a passenger in a big jet, I still find it to be a rush when the jet rotates and rockets skyward; the hydraulic pumps kick in with a whine, the flaps and gear come up, the smells of the kerosene, all give me a thrill. I'm amazed at passengers who can sleep through a takeoff or landing, and NEVER even peek out the window at that 50,000 ft+ thunderstorm we pass by at night, lightning blazing away creating an unequalled light show.

Keep the passion... it'll reward you well!

 

[Gulfstream 200]

If you want to be a pilot fly airplanes all else is BS. Don't get caught up in the college degree thing.

exactly. just fly. Turbojet PIC is where its at. Dont waste those 4 years at college.

You will only wind up 4 years behind those Spirit MD80 F/O's and DA20 on demand freight check airmen.

 

[joelo88]

Colby

Go to college. It's definitely worth it. You already have a head start in flying. I didn't start until after my second degree.

I suggest a degree not related to aviation so you have something to fall back on if flying doesn’t work out. I've got a degree in accounting that could work for me if I lose my medical or something else goes wrong. Another thing to consider is that you want to have fun also. If you spend every second of your life pushing the career and pushing the career you're probably going to look back one day and wonder what you've really done with your life. Flying is just one small part of life. Stop to smell the roses once in awhile. The military would be a great choice too. I wish I could have done it but I'm blind as a bat. But still GO TO COLLEGE. My .02. You have to think and decide what's right for you man.
joe

 

[bobbysamd]

College

Is a 28 year old Spirit MD-80 F/O a poor job in avaition because the pilot does not have a degree. It is a doable career path.

. . . but successful only for a small percentage of non-degreed people. The odds are still better with a degree.

Here again, Yip, your model of the 20-year-old who goes from high school to USA Jets FO in two years reads more like a flight school ad than reality. The potential 28-year-old's chances getting jobs that will get him to Spirit diminish if his/her competition has the degree and he/she does not.

Might it not also be irresponsible to encourage a student to go to college who is not ready for college.

He/she should at least give it a try. But the chances of a person returning to college after working for a few years lessen. It is hard to get back into full-blown school mode after being out of school. I know. I did. And the distance learning route does not always work. Distance learning is the modern version of old-fashioned correspondence courses. Not many people have the initiative to sit down and study after working long hours - and you really cannot blame them. Even well-motivated and focused people, much less pilots who have schedules, have trouble working and going to school.

Better to get education out of the way first and then fly. Who knows where aviation will be in a few years? One's interests can change. A college degree is a lifetime career credential.

 

[pilotyip]

Why most pilots have a degree

The reason most pilots hired have college degrees, it because most pilots applying have college degrees. So if almost everyone applying has a college degree, then almost everyone hired will have a college degree. Non degreed pilots with 1000's of TJ PIC are getting hired at a high rate. Go check "SWA and the college degree" thread, there is a non-degreed SWA Capt, who thanks his lucky stars for not having a degree, it protected him from being hired at DAL.

 

[RideTheWind]

Go to college, not for the degree but for the hot girls

 

[bobbysamd]

College degree debate, redux

The reason most pilots hired have college degrees, it because most pilots applying have college degrees. So if almost everyone applying has a college degree, then almost everyone hired will have a college degree. Non degreed pilots with 1000's of TJ PIC are getting hired at a high rate.

Good luck trying to get hired at United, American, etc. if they ever start hiring again. The point is that having the degree makes one eligible for all jobs, not just a handful.

Morever, have you considered the possibility, Yip, that these pilots were hired because they have college degrees?

Go check "SWA and the college degree" thread, there is a non-degreed SWA Capt, who thanks his lucky stars for not having a degree, it protected him from being hired at DAL.

Was someone holding a gun to his head and telling him that he will work at DAL or else?

SWA needs only so many pilots. Having the degree will not preclude one from a job, unless, Yip, management fears that too many educated pilots will cause them trouble

 

[pilotyip]

Out of line Bobby

What does a degree have to do with education? A college degree today is available with very little education. And I can PM you with the names of pilots hired a UAL and NWA without degrees. Their hiring was based upon quality TJ PIC. You can make a $100/k as a pilot in your mid 30's without a degree. This for many who love to fly airplanes will be a fantastic career. And as far as your comment about wanting uneducated pilots so management can manipulate them, nothing could be farther from the truth. We test for basic intelligence, and it has nothing to do with degrees. Smart employees make better employees, they can see a bigger picture. Much like SWA, a smart airline does not let the presence or absence of a degree stand in the way hiring the right candidate.

 

[bobbysamd]

Favorable positioning

What does a degree have to do with education? A college degree today is available with very little education.

. . . . which might have been true in Mark Twain's day. He said he never let his schooling interfere with his education. But that was in the 19th century; we're in the 21st century now.

There are degree mills. You can be anything you want to be, Yip, with a mail-order degree; just don't get caught . . . .

And I can PM you with the names of pilots hired a UAL and NWA without degrees. Their hiring was based upon quality TJ PIC.

. . . but how many of those hired were high school only, Yip? Even fifteen years ago, if you read the "Congratulations, FAPA Pilots" box in each month's Career Pilot magazine, the pilots hired by the majors had at least a couple of years of college, if not Bachelor's or advanced degrees.

You can make a $100/k as a pilot in your mid 30's without a degree. This for many who love to fly airplanes will be a fantastic career.

. . . . if you're lucky, I repeat, lucky, enough to be hired by one of the few companies who do not require the degree outright or emphasize strongly its importance.

Frankly, I'd rather go with the percentages instead of luck. The percentages show that one has a greater chance of being considered by all companies with a college degree.

And as far as your comment about wanting uneducated pilots so management can manipulate them, nothing could be farther from the truth. We test for basic intelligence, and it has nothing to do with degrees. Smart employees make better employees, they can see a bigger picture. Much like SWA, a smart airline does not let the presence or absence of a degree stand in the way hiring the right candidate.

That is Southwest's philosophy. Only one company, Yip, though you mentioned before that jetBlue and Spirit hire without degrees. So, that makes three. Talk about putting all of one's eggs in one (three) baskets.

A degree may have little or nothing to do with actually flying airplanes. But it has everything to do with being educated and positioning one's self most favorably for getting the job.

 

[Gulfstream 200]

C'mon YIP, give it a rest...its getting old.

We know you LOVE to point out those 1 or 2 guys who managed to get on with SWA without a degree..but what % of newhires have 4 yr degrees? I would bet at LEAST 90%..and thats just SWA...sure, they are the golden child right now but what happens when they tank? where else is the non degreed pilot going to go to be competitive?

Corporate? not likely...most also require 4 yr degree, and advanced degrees are becoming more common..

USA JET? OK maybe, but thats certainly not a great job in MOST folks minds (I repeat MOST)..

What does a degree have to do with flying an airplane you ask? (over and over again..) nothing. But it has everything to do with being competitive in the marketplace. Plain and Simple. This has been the norm for what...the last 20 years??

You can drum up your same old rant about DC9 car part pilots and Spirit MD80 fo's without degrees again, but c'mon YIP, those jobs kinda suck. They should not be the ultimate goal of a 15 yr old looking for advice on how to succeed in aviation...

give the poor kid realistic advice.

 

[pilotyip]

G-200 Define Suck?

Your defintion of suck does not fit everyone on this board. I love what I do and feel I am one of the luckiest guys in the world, I am living my dream, not your dream. There are many people who just love flying airplanes, and to make a decent living doing what you love is more than many people get to experience in thier lives. I will not back off the alternate flying career as long as the only input prospective pilots get "Is get your degree first" How many reading this board think a job at Spirit sucks?

 

[pilotyip]

Bobby out of line again

Air Inc says there 122 airlines interviewing, only 5 of those require a degree, that is alot more than 3. Whoops can not finish got to go fly!

 

[Flywrite]

Dispatch121-If this is the kind of website my kids want to visit when they are 15 I'll be tickled pink. It sounds like Colby's folks have a kid with some ambition and focus. I personally think they could be a lot worse off than having their 15-year-old frequent flightinfo.com.


Pilotyip-You have given some good advice and encouragement on here to various individuals, but speaking as a mid 30s professional pilot who is just now getting around to completing my degree I must say that telling a 15 year old to fly instead of going to college is not only bad advice, it greatly diminishes your own credibility on here. Just becasue you got a good job without a degree doesn't mean it is easy or that everyone can do it.

Colby-Welcome. Dont listen to Pilotyip!