Questions about college

[eif87]

Hey guys!

Ever since I was little, my Ultimate goal in life was to become an Airline Pilot. Now that I am a senior in High School, that dream is still there, and so I have decided to try and become one (I wanna fly 737's, etc.). I was looking at going to ERAU in Prescott, but on the forums and other places on the net, it sounds like it's a waste of $100,000+ just for an aeronautical science degree and 250 hours of flight time. I did visit the campus about a month ago, and I LOVED the 'aviation' atmosphere of it all, but it just seemed....cheap and shoddy? Like they just want your money and don't really care how you become an airline pilot when you graduate. I also wanted something to fall back on in case the industry takes a turn for the worse, so the A.S Degree won't really help me. Also, I don't really want to move that far from home quite yet, so I was thinking about doing this: Go to a local state university for four years, get a degree in Mechanical Engineering (and while doing this get my PPL) and then when I graduate, go to Pan Am's flight academy. In the end, this will STILL be cheaper than ERAU, and I'll have a seperate degree other than aviation to fall back on, and also have many more hours than if I had graduated from ERAU(unless my reasoning is wrong?). Would this help me in becoming an airline pilot? Is Pan-Am a respectable place to get your training, and will they help me achieve my dream? I know you guys can't make my decisions, but ANY suggestions/comments would really be appreciated. As of now, I'm leaning towards the latter of the two decisions: going to my state university, get a degree, go to pan-am, etc.

Thanks for your help and hopefully I'll see you in the skies in a couple of years!

Eif87

 

[EatSleepFly]

If I were you, I'd go to your local state school, get that mechanical engineering degree.....and become an mechanical engineer.

Of course, if you really must fly, then do the M.E. degree and do your flight training at a decent FBO in the summers while you're in college. Pan Am is probably more expensive than its worth...the certificates/ratings are the same no matter where you get them.

 

[Rhoid]

Just make sure you don't get on with a commuter and then "quit" shortly thereafter.

 

[mayday1]

while I don't have recent price info, keep in mind that your instrument, multi, comm, CFI tickets at Pan Am will run you around $50k - not to mention your living expenses. While ERAU may not be cheap, neither is Pan Am - and that goes for most of the big schools (FSI, ATP, DCA, etc.). There are horror stories out there of people spending between $80 and $100k at some of these places.

If I could do things over again, I'd get my ratings (through CFI) at a local FBO while I went to college. As Eatsleepfly said, it doesn't matter where you got the ratings.

In any case, you're right about getting the 4 year degree now, first. I'd make that the priority, and then work in the flying where you can.

 

[EatSleepFly]

Just make sure you don't get on with a commuter and then "quit" shortly thereafter.

Dear HemorRhoid,

I don't know why exactly it is that you feel the need to respond to every post I make, but its getting tiring. Yes, I got on at a regional, and yes I quit shortly after. Its really none of anyone's business, but I'm not trying to hide it or make excuses for it, so I don't know why you continually bring it up. You said yourself that my leaving didn't affect you in any way, so wtf. You also said that you know me from KLUK. You don't. Either you made that up, or you've got the wrong guy. I don't know anyone there, and I've only been there a couple of times in passing. Get a life, dude.

~ESF

 

[pilotyip]

Go fly airplanes

If you want to be a pilot go fly airplanes. Do an on-line search on the college degree you will gets tons of information

 

[redd]

Anyone know the cost of ERAU online? Is there any cheaper online degree that can still be accredited?

 

[Clyde]

Hey guys!

Ever since I was little, my Ultimate goal in life was to become an Airline Pilot. Now that I am a senior in High School, that dream is still there, and so I have decided to try and become one (I wanna fly 737's, etc.). I was looking at going to ERAU in Prescott, but on the forums and other places on the net, it sounds like it's a waste of $100,000+ just for an aeronautical science degree and 250 hours of flight time. I did visit the campus about a month ago, and I LOVED the 'aviation' atmosphere of it all, but it just seemed....cheap and shoddy? Like they just want your money and don't really care how you become an airline pilot when you graduate. I also wanted something to fall back on in case the industry takes a turn for the worse, so the A.S Degree won't really help me. Also, I don't really want to move that far from home quite yet, so I was thinking about doing this: Go to a local state university for four years, get a degree in Mechanical Engineering (and while doing this get my PPL) and then when I graduate, go to Pan Am's flight academy. In the end, this will STILL be cheaper than ERAU, and I'll have a seperate degree other than aviation to fall back on, and also have many more hours than if I had graduated from ERAU(unless my reasoning is wrong?). Would this help me in becoming an airline pilot? Is Pan-Am a respectable place to get your training, and will they help me achieve my dream? I know you guys can't make my decisions, but ANY suggestions/comments would really be appreciated. As of now, I'm leaning towards the latter of the two decisions: going to my state university, get a degree, go to pan-am, etc.

Thanks for your help and hopefully I'll see you in the skies in a couple of years!

Eif87

Eif87,

Rule number one with aviation: an aviation degree is NOT required to get on with an airline.

Rule number two with aviation: ERAU is a waste of money.

Rule number three with aviation: if you end up not flying, an aviation degree is pretty much useless.

Go to a local state college and get a degree in Mechanical Engineering. It will cost you less and you may find it to be more advantageous in the long run, especially when (yes, when) you need it to fall back on. Personally, if it were me, I would go for an Electrical Engineering degree. But, I digress.

Regarding ERAU: I went there back in 1990 and left before the semester was over. In all of the advertisements I read, they claimed to be the "Harvard of the aviation industry". I found it to be quite the contrary. Professors lacked a lot of knowledge other than "stories of the good 'ol days", and several knew the material but did a terrible job of teaching it. The aviation atmosphere disappears very quickly after you get that bill for tuition and room and board. I left before I could waste anymore money. My academic advisor told me the airlines would never hire me. I'm tempted to send him my W2 statement and a copy of my ATP with my DA-20 and 757/767 type ratings on it. I ended up going to another college and earning my degree for about $60K less than the crooks at ERAU wanted. And, one more thing. ERAU will tell you how great your resume will stand out in the stack at an airline. I can assure you, very positively, that it will look just like everybody elses resume and will hold no more than merit than the one sitting above or below it. It's who you know that will get you the job.

Finally, you are going to need a marketable skill other than flying. Everything you will need to know you will learn in flight school.

Think of all of the people who come to interviews with aviation degrees. They are a dime-a-dozen. When an interviewer asks you what degree you have and you respond with an Engineering degree, you are going to make an impression on that person. Why? Becuase you will stand out as being different in a positive way. They also know that colleges don't hand out Engineering degrees either. They know that if you can make it through that program, you will have very little trouble flying their airplanes.

 

[Goose Egg]

I'd skip ERAU. I did a 4 year aviation degree at a state school. When I graduated, I had around $18k of student loans, which I from what I understand from some of my co-workers is way under the average. But then again, I had some grants too, and I lived at home because the school was a 20 minute drive from my house. If you are looking at an aviation degree, the state school is definitely the way to go.

Mechanical Engineering is a good field to go into if you can tolerate it. But understand, it is extremely demanding (it ain't high school, that's for sure!), and you will most likely not be able to do any flying during the school year (or anything other than school work, for that matter) unless you are exceptionally bright. If you want to fly, then fly. Being an egghead engineer ain't the only way to make a lving. I can't believe I'm actually agreeing with pilot_yip.

One point that yip and I will always differ on is the importance of a college degree. I personally feel that it is a wise idea to obtain one, if only to provide some sort of backup if (read when) you encounter rough times in the aviation world. And don't misunderstand me here--an aviation degree is fine. But to suppose that one could make it on a high school education if flying fell through is utterly asinine, and the advice of high-school education only proponents should be eschewed (read avoided like the plague) for that same reason. To think that a secondary education and a few ratings are adequate preparation for the world is a completely hazardous notion. But I digress.

There are many benefits to a college eduaction, and that is to say nothing of increased marketability within the aviation industry as well as the direct and indirect benefits that are inextricably connected to advanced education.

Now, with that said, sometimes I wish I had done something other than an aviation degree (but not engineering) even though I enjoyed it immensely. And the reason for that is that I feel like I missed the chance to develop some of my other talents--I was actually a pretty good artist back in H.S. Flying could have been a cool minor though. So, choose wisely, and find a degree that you will enjoy; one that will enrich your mind instead of bleed it dry.

-Goose

 

[Rhoid]

Clyde, I wholeheartedly agree with you. You'd have to be a total moron to waste that much money on Riddle. On an unrelated note, you'd also have to be a total moron to "quit" Eagle.