Masters in Aviation Administration

[Hawker1]

I'm looking into graduate school, and one of the degrees I'm interested in is Aviation Administration. This particular school has two concentrations in the field: airline/airport management and aviation asset management.

My questions for you are:
What type jobs, specifically, could one get with a M.S. in Aviation Admin?
What companies look for these degrees?
How much money would one roughly start out at?

I ask here because I haven't been able to talk to anyone from the university about these concerns. Just would like to know what was out there for someone looking to be in and around the aviation industry that isn't a full time pilot.

Thanks a lot.

Hawker1

 

[KeroseneSnorter]

You are kidding right?

Good Grief, do not waste a masters degree on something aviation related!!!! Get something useful for when your aviation career takes a giant nose plant......odds are it will sooner or later.

 

[satpak77]

dont waste your time

nobody at the airline's corp HQ has "Aviation Management" degrees

however, you will find lots of JD's and MBA's, also CFA's and CPA's

if you are getting a Masters get it in something useful

those airline MBA's at XXX Airline can easily go to Fortune 500 Company XYZ if they want to.

if you have an "Aviation Management" degree, and your airline folds, where you gonna go? Marriott Hotels? Verizon? Merrill Lynch? how is your resume gonna look in the pile along with Stanford, Wharton, Yale MBA's?

 

[Clutch_Cargo]

Good Grief, do not waste a masters degree on something aviation related!!!! Get something useful for when your aviation career takes a giant nose plant......odds are it will sooner or later.

if you are getting a Masters get it in something useful

I'll third that!! I have a BS in aviation... what a freakin' waste! I even had a professor who told me I should get another degree or, at the very least, a minor in something else. Dumba$$ that I am, I went out and got an A&P thinking, if I ever medical out, I can still stay in the biz. Idiot!! If one end is bad, the other probably will be too. And even though it has come in handy a time or two, turning wrenches wasn't what I really had in mind. Don't be as stupid as I was... put that extra education to good use and get something you can use when that fateful day comes! Just my .02!

cc

 

[bobbysamd]

Advanced aviation degrees

if you are getting a Masters get it in something useful

those airline MBA's at XXX Airline can easily go to Fortune 500 Company XYZ if they want to . . . .

While I happen to like undergrad aviation degrees, I have to agree with these comments.

Aviation Management does seem useless if your objective is to be an aviation manager. Sounds oxymoronish, I realize, but aviation managers are still drawn from the ranks of standard-issue management degree holders, e.g., MBAs, and especially from the top-echelon schools. That doesn't mean that you must go to the Harvard Business School or else, but, if management is your objective, you should consider a straight management-type degree.

Also, nothing wrong with getting a second Bachelor's, in Business Administration, in something like Accounting.

Finally, you don't necessarily have to become a licensed attorney for a J.D. to be useful. You'd be surprised at the number of J.D. holders who work in administration, professional fund raising, and other fields. I know of a J.D. with other experience who works in cognitive retraining. J.D.s who aren't lawyers are successful in law firm administration, etc.

Hope that helps some more.

 

[Hawker1]

I appreciate all of your input. You guys have definitely helped me in my decision. One more thing though, can you guys fill me in on what other aviation job titles there are besides pilot. One that comes to my head is ATC. Besides that, what jobs are out there for someone seeking to be in the industry but not to be a pilot. How could one go to work for a company saling general aviation aircraft, or designing aircraft? Thanks.

 

[satpak77]

One more thing though, can you guys fill me in on what other aviation job titles there are besides pilot.

be advised, for all practical purposes, their is one "ATC employer" out there, its the FAA. Miss the hiring cycle, be too old, too young, etc, etc, and forget it.

some aviation jobs

Airline Pilot
Corporate Pilot
Military Pilot
police pilot
Dispatcher
ATC
aircraft sales
mechanic
airport management (city employment)
etc etc

 

[LXJ31]

If ATC is your thing, the time is nownownow. You have to be with the FAA by the time you are 31 or no dice. But there are so many controllers set to retire in the next few years that this is THE time to be an ATCer. At least thats what the propoganda tells me.

http://www.faa.gov/apa/pr/pr.cfm?id=1904

Basically, they are hiring over 100 controllers a month for the next TEN FREAKIN' YEARS. They'll be more controllers than airplanes, they'll have to stay sharp by controlling each other. "Dave, turn right 30 degrees direct the coffee maker when able. I'll take mine with milk and two sugars."

 

[JimBo480]

I agree with the advice this group has provided. I have a Masters in Aeronautical Science/Management I obtained as a square filler for pormotion in the military. When I was furloughed 3 plus years ago I tried to shop around for a job with a resume that had 10 years of (military) airport management background and the degree. NOTHING.

So I fell back to my BS degree in Mechanical Engineering, and with almost no engineering experience I was able to land a great job as a manufacturing engineer at a plant a few miles away. I can't make a living in aviation now unless I'm willing to start over at $17k/year. I'm thankful my BS degree was in a field that allowed me to move on with my life after aviation.

Go for the MBA.

Jim, furloughed

 

[cforst513]

COME ON, GUYS!!! How else is he going to get that multi-million dollar end of the year bonus while the pilots, F/A's, and mechanics get a generic card in the mail?

 

[Hawker1]

Thanks again for all your help. I checked out the ATC article. Pretty good deal. My next question is how do I become an ATC? Is there schooling, certificates, ratings, etc? What's the ATC lifestyle like? Is there any money to be made in it? Thanks a lot.

 

[LXJ31]

This internet thing is amazing. I could type for a half-hour and explain everything to you I know about ATC, pay etc. But that would be a half-hour I would never get back, and I would be on my death-bed 70 years from now still pissed about it. Or you could try one of those search functions on Flightinfo or Google or Yahoo.

Give a man a fish, he eats for a day. Teach a man to fish...

No offense.

 

[Goose Egg]

Just for the record, I'm starting a "normal" MBA program in the fall.

-Goose

 

[viperdriver]

You could get a job teaching aviation management.

 

[lawfly]

On the J.D. topic, it's certainly true that many J.D.s do not practice, although some of those currently non-practicing have practiced in the past. Could depend on what electives you take, but law school, the Bar exam, and practicing law are three different things. If you're into knowing more about what you study than just what is in the books and what is said by the professors (who themselves might not have any practical experience), take the Bar and practice for a while. (Kind of like the difference between ground school and flying. Or at least do clinical work in school, that is probably analogous to a flight simulator, but still not the real thing.) But, if you get a great business job offer without the Bar, and that's your thing, go for it. I'm just saying that if you have any curiosity about practicing something versus only studying it, go ahead and pass the Bar and practice for a while. Perhaps target firms, high-end firms if you can get into them, who have airlines, aviation manufacturers, etc., as transactional or litigation clients. I am saying this because, practicing for some time now, I can tell you that law school (back when I went, anyway) and practicing law are two different (but complementary) learning experiences. On the topic of not becoming admitted to practice, you won't have to annual pay Bar dues (if your jurisdiction imposes them), and you won't have Mandatory Continuing Legal Education, or be subject to Bar regulation/discipline. Mentioning that for the sake of accuracy/completeness. Or do the MBA. Or a different graduate program, if you ultimately decide. I am curious about the GSU Masters in Aviation, but it's not on my own personal horizon. FAA website probably a good starting point for ATC employment process. And hiring projections there have been publicized lately. Good Luck.

 

[smellthejeta]

Thanks again for all your help. I checked out the ATC article. Pretty good deal. My next question is how do I become an ATC? Is there schooling, certificates, ratings, etc? What's the ATC lifestyle like? Is there any money to be made in it? Thanks a lot.

Another poster hit the 30 minute mark on the head. The short answer: You go to civillian school first, there are ratings, but you don't need them for the FAA academy. Look at the FAA website for the schools. There's 13 of them in the country. There is some money to be made.

Search around for some of my postson the subject. If you want more detailed information than what I've written, PM me and I'll see what I can do. I've got some PM's to others that I could probably pass along.