Like PilotYIP says, Skip College

[LearLove]

its becoming so expensive to go to a private 4 year school you may as well go to the military, get trained in some skill as an enlisted (equiv. to a 2 year degree), get out after 4 years and get a civ job and have a reserve/guard gig. You'll be 22 no debt, start at 40K+ and have the reserves/guard green checks. As long as you settle in an area that is not too expensive (like the Carolina's) by the time your 30 you will be way ahead of someone that did the 4 year school and came out with 200K in college loans and got a job that will be downsized ect.

A great example of this would be my old neighbor in CLT. After high school he straight to the Navy. He tested well enough to get air traffic control. He trained and was active until he was 24 or 25 then got picked up by ATC (he now works CLT approach). While he was on active duty he got a 2 year (AS) degree (can't remember what it was). He joined the NC army guard and works in the JAG office. When he was my neighbor (last year) he was 30 and way ahead in terms of cash and saving than others. Plus he had 2 secure jobs. As I was moving back to PHL a few months ago he was buying his first home in the CLT area.

 

[ASA_Aviator]

That's well said Yip- The difference is educated v uneducated- the educated will always have a leg up- too many think a piece of paper means something all by itself

Exactly. College is about education, not getting a job. If you want a job, go get vocational training. If you want to be educated, go to college.

The main problem is that being educated is not valued in the United States.

 

[no1pilot2000]

Interesting article. If looking into an education after college, try taking a skillls and/or aptitude test. Discover what you are realistically able to do vs. what you would like to do. "IF" you pursue a technical school, be weary of what they try to "sell you". I made the mistake of going to a local technical college in Baltimore for electronics. I had a lot of difficulty learning the material and they ended up "pushing me" through the course. They said I passed the course. I asked them how I could I have passed the course when I was getting poor grades on my tests and projects.

When choosing a post secondary education...CHOOSE WISELY!!!!!! The recession we are slowly recovering from has changed the job market forever. Many jobs that were once lucerative, have become extinct. That's one of the reasons why people in their 40's and 50's are going back to school. They are now out of jobs that won't we coming back and need to be retrained in a new career.

Good luck to all.

 

[BornAgainPagan]

So the consensus seems to be that it is more desirable to get a degree....even if it's in Basket Fiber Sciences? After all, (given the necessary accreditation) an easy bull$hit degree checks the same boxes at FedEx or Delta as a more challenging field of study.

You're fooling yourself if you think airlines require/prefer a degree because it shows a higher caliber, commitment or ability to complete an objective. A degree (even in Professional Aeronautics) has NOTHING to do with one's skills, judgment or professionalism in the cockpit. The bottom line; To the airlines, it is only for image. Otherwise there would be a standard above basket weaving. Yes, if you want an airline job, get a degree to check the box and greatly improve your chance of getting hired. Nevertheless, what a sad philosophy.

 

[Whine Lover]

So, basically...Those without Degrees explain away all the reasons they don't/have not needed one and tabulate data explaining why they are correct.

Those with Degrees really don't care either way. They have the Degree...

Much like Penis Envy there are "Haves" and "Have Nots".

Human Nature always dictates that we want what the other person has.

Glad I had a great time in Daytona and Prescott in the 70's and now have a piece of paper to prove it.

Whoopty-Doo! And, What-Ever...


YKMKR

 

[Whine Lover]

A thought occurs:

Now, they want to legislate that everyone has: The ATP.

OOOhhhh....The PHD ( If you will ) of Aviation.

Whoopty-Do! Again.

Renslow had one one of those, and all those people are still dead.

Hmmmm? Go figure.

Pieces of paper are good for 2 things...Wiping the bungee, and writing upon.

Oh, and hanging on the wall in a nifty frame to Lord over those who don't have one...

Now, I am off to buy a very large, expensive watch, and a very gay pair of Dave Clarks....




YKW

 

[airplane wizard]

not going to college = no sex with hot college girls

 

[no1pilot2000]

I knew there was a reason I went to college and it wasn't for that piece of paper everyone told me I need to get ahead in life. If you wanted sex education, just get to know some of the college cuties in their prime sunning themselves on the quad.

Damn it, I am going back to college!!!

 

[jpeace02]

http://money.cnn.com/2006/10/25/pf/college/census_degree/index.htm

Intresting discussion but the figures are pretty clear. As a side note, being a furloughed NJA guy has done nothing for me in the business world. They want a business degree with specialized training in finance, acctg, IT, etc.

I think getting a good job right now without a college degree is pretty difficult.

The US economy will require more specialized workers, who can do different tasks at once and who can think critically about problems.

 

[pilotyip]

think critically

http://money.cnn.com/2006/10/25/pf/college/census_degree/index.htmThe US economy will require more specialized workers, who can do different tasks at once and who can think critically about problems.

you are correct but college is not the only place to get those skills. You can also spend 4 years in college and develop no skills

 

[Quimby]

you are correct but college is not the only place to get those skills. You can also spend 4 years in college and develop no skills

Not all students are fat, drunk & lazy.....Belushi style. Although it makes for good entertainment.

 

[chignutsak]

... He tells me how disappointed he was that his daughter, Valedictorian of her class, turned down a partial college scholarship to join the Navy's Nuclear Power Plant Operators rating. I told him he a daughter with extreme wisdom, that almost anyone can get into college, but most college grads could not pass the entrance test to be a Nuke...

It's been a few years, but passing the NAPT is not that difficult unless you breezed through school with the bare minimum in sciences and math. The test is mainly at the high school level. Having said that, once you begin the overall training pipeline is very much a firehose, and it goes on for quite sometime until you hit the fleet. At my airline interview the interviewer was very much interested in this experience on my resume; it was living proof that I could rapidly digest large amounts of technical info over a short period of time. She said it directly contributed to me being hired.

 

[Redmeat]

When a potential employee walks thru the interview door, the only thing a hiring manager knows about that person is what's on a piece of paper in front of him.

If there is a degree from an accredited 4 year college or university it already says something about the person even before the first words are spoken.

It says you can be where you are supposed to be when you are supposed to be there over a lengthy period. It says you can complete difficult (at times), lengthy assignments. It says you have long-term 'stick-to-it-ivness'.

It also says you have developed some life skills and some social skills.

None of these things can be adequately gleaned by a 30 minute conversation or Sim ride...

The simple fact is a person without a 4 year degree is a bigger crap-shoot for the employer. Period. In our business we all walk thru the door with the same license and ratings on our certs. The person with the 4 year degree is getting the job.

Go to college. people don't even ask IF you went to college anymore. They ask WHERE you went to college...

 

[HalinTexas]

Your basic high school diploma prepares you for nothing in this world. No understanding of history, civics, economics, mathematics, scientific thought (reasoning) or communication. Many go to college and get none of the above, either. They went for "job skills." I learned more in my first two years than the preceding 12 years, not including kindergarten where I learned everything I need to know.

While going into the Navy as a nuke tech, is honorable. There is some thinking required. One thought: when you get out, will there be nuke plants or wind farms? Will you be able to get insurance as a civilian due to the radiation exposure. (There's always some.) If your child gets through that school, and continues to getting a nuclear engineering degree (w/ Dr?) then she'll be in the 98th percentile and set.

A little schoolin' never hurt nobody.

 

[pilotyip]

Not needed until the last step in the Aviaiton Industry

If there is a degree from an accredited 4 year college or university it already says something about the person even before the first words are spoken.

It says you can be where you are supposed to be when you are supposed to be there over a lengthy period. It says you can complete difficult (at times), lengthy assignments. It says you have long-term 'stick-to-it-ivness'.

It also says you have developed some life skills and some social skills.

None of these things can be adequately gleaned by a 30 minute conversation or Sim ride...

The simple fact is a person without a 4 year degree is a bigger crap-shoot for the employer. Period. In our business we all walk thru the door with the same license and ratings on our certs. The person with the 4 year degree is getting the job.

First off, it is not necessary to go to a 4-yr college right out of high school to end up at a major airline. Because college has nothing to do with flying an airplane, now I will admit it may have an effect on getting an interview and hired after you have 1000's of hour flying someplace else that could give a hoot about a college degree. This following example in the model of success in pursing flying job. We hired a 20 year old pilot about 8 years ago. He had 1 year of on-line college credit completed. He had started working the ramp pumping gas in high school, got hired hauling cargo in SA-227 as an F/O for no pay, at 18, got promoted to 208 Capt. at age 20. When we hired him, he had 1600 TT, 1100 MEL, 350 Turbine PIC, 1450 total turbine. He is started as a DA-20 F/O at $33K/yr, he made a DA-20 Capt at age 23. His on-line degree in Aviation Management was completed by the time he was 26 years old and he had a DC-9 type. At that time he had 4000 TT, 2800 MEL, 2800 Turbine, 2000 hours 121 time, 1200 121 Turbo Jet PIC and two TJ type ratings. He has his on-line BS degree in Aviation Management, and no debt. He interviewed with a major and was offered a job. The traditional 4-yr. degree guy at age 26 who has 1200 TT 350 MEL 15 Turbine was not offered an interview. Who is the more competitive? Remember you enter this career because you like to fly airplanes, hang around airports and drink beer with other pilots.