Whats all this BS about the BS degree?

[dmspilot00]

Thanks for you insight JediNein. Very interesting.

The government will only subsidize interest on student loans if someone can claim you as a dependant. Also, there are limits on the amount of the subsidized loan you can take out. If you can't get enough money from government loans (subsidized or not), you can get an alternative loan through a number of sources, including Sallie Mae, TERI, and GATE. Sallie Mae only gives loans if you're enrolling in a 4-year program, TERI will give loans for 2-year programs. Not sure about GATE, but I did not go with them because their interest/terms were not as good.

People much older, wiser, and more experienced than me have expressed very similar opinions when it comes to education. My age and how I pay for it has nothing to do with it and it's none of your business.

 

[kl7741]

I personally would highly recommend ERAU's distance learning program. I enrolled at the end of 1998 and I am still enrolled; taking one class at a time and working towards a BS degree.

I thought it was a great program before they went online, and I still think it's a great program. It just takes a little getting used to especially if your used to the traditional distance learning stuff.

As far as their videos are concerned, I do remember one or two classes (I've taken 14) that have had some boring videos, but the videos were only a part of the whole syllabus; I would expect some boring lectures during face-to-face classes too.

I personally have never had any problems with the billing department. At ERAU they assign you an "academic advisor" that handles your account. All of your dealings go through that person. Mine (Andrea) is great! She has been there since I started with them, and I can always reach her on the telephone.

 

[gsrcrsx68]

ERAU

I will say this about Riddle. Paying for their paper is well worth it. People always recognize the name, especially in aviation. As for the Riddle run around, all I can say is the people in Az were always nice. True that you need your checkbook but then again that is the price you pay as a civilian getting in to aviation.

as for this:
<<My age and how I pay for it has nothing to do with it and it's none of your business. >>

Actually it has as much to do with it as does your level of education. You are voicing some strong opinions not only about education, but about people. Nobody is going to disagree college is better than no college. However sweeping generalizations regaurding people and the types of education that people get seem silly. I venture a guess that when you put a few more miles under your belt and life opens yours eyes for you over time(as it does for everyone) you will be able to appreciate more of the different paths life takes people on.

Think on this: The point the world is at is because of the work of all people, not the minute percentage of people who have walked the earth with a college degree. Certainly it is only a fraction of a percent of the people throughout history that have ever had a degree.

 

[dmspilot00]

If I only think the way I do because of my age, then how do you explain the other 50% of people on this thread that are older than me expressing similar opinions?

My being older isn't going to affect all the people who say, later in life, "I wish I had gone to college. I made such a mistake." I've heard it too many times. Hardly any people in my family in previous generations went to college, and they are ALL sorry for it. Not a single person thinks college is a waste of time, and not one can think of a good reason why one should not go to college. There's people that want to go, but can't, and that's a different story--I wish those people good luck.

I predict that many of the people that say college is a waste of time will change their minds, eventually. Like I said before, rumpletumbler seems to think that only "dumb" people go to college because they aren't smart enough otherwise. Anyone with an IQ of at least 10 realizes that nothing can be further from the truth.

There are also people who go to college, coast along while barely passing; attending parties getting drunk all the time, and they aren't any better than people who did not go to college at all. Shame on them.

To me, there is nothing better than the excitement that comes from learning and being in a college environment (on campus or not). For people to dismiss this and say it's worthless caused me to be furiated enough to make the generalizations I made.

It's the same as me telling all of you that learning to fly is a waste of time, and that you don't need to "learn to fly" to experience flying. It's an expensive waste of money and job opportunities are highly limited. Some non-pilots might think the same thing, but saying that to a group of pilots would outrage them. So would telling dedicated, honest college students, or people that have gone to college and enjoyed it, that college is a waste of time.

The difference is that for many people, not going to college means you will have a very limited and difficult future.

Thank you for your time.

 

[JediNein]

Three small thoughts...

Subsidized student loans are available for ALL students, not just dependents or independent students. The amount available will vary.

Boring lectures in actual classrooms, yes, I've had my share of them. Online courses, correspondence courses, undergraduate in-classrom, graduate in-classroom, none are immune. However, a student can change the prof's tune during an in-class session. Same thing with the online sessions and various correspondence courses. A set of 10 videos? No luck.

UNO is 1/3 the price of ERAU...

Fly SAFE!
Jedi Nein

 

[gsrcrsx68]

dmspilot00

Now those seem to be intelligent thought out points, laced with a bit more understanding for others. Good luck to you with both your studies and your flying.

 

[B-J-J Fighter]

Degree

Im very proud of my degree. I made o.k. grades and graduated with a 3.1.
Im proud of my degree because I also participated in Division I athletics. It wasnt that the course work was so hard, for me college taught my time management if nothing else. We trained 6 hours per day during the wrestling season.

We had balls to the wall conditioning practice every weekday morning from 6am to 8am. I went straight to class stinking like crazy because there was no time to take a shower. I attended class from about 8 to noon everyday. Went straight back to the dorms after class, took a shower, then would cook fresh skinless boneless chicken, steam one cup of rice and make a small salad. After eating my lunch I made a protein shake to take with me to the gym to lift weights. After lifting I would study in the library a few hours before heading to the real wrestling practice with started at 4 and ended anywhere from 6 to 7. After practice back to the dorm room to cook a nutricious (sp?) meal. After eating and taking a shower more book time.

My whole point o this was college taught me excellent time management skills and how to priortize things. There was never enough time in the day to do everything I needed to do. I just got real good at priortizing my life which I think makes people successful at life in general. Im off to the gym now, sorry for the rambling, go get a degree it will make you proud of it if you have to work for it like I did.

 

[aero99]

wow.

There are some very good points on both sides of this discussion. I think BJJ's comment that getting his degree provided him skills in time management and prioritization is dead on. Life experience is something one cannot buy or study. What you choose to learn by every experience determines your success...not a piece of paper stating you followed curriculum.

I didn't go to college, yet I feel I have been successful in what I have done in the past and will be successful in the future and it has nothing to do with the fact that I do or don't have a degree.

When I was deciding if I wanted to pursue a professional career as a pilot, I knew I would have to get the degree in order to be competitive in the market place. It is a hurdle to jump through and what you learn during that process is up to the individual, not the lesson plan.

The only reason I would go to college at this point would be for my personal satisfaction of accomplishing it. I would bet that my resume and my past work ethics is more important than a degree is and I don't know too many people that made over 150k a year without a degree. I was lucky and in the right place at the right time and I applied myself to the tasks at hand to get there.

I left that job because I learned that chasing the might $ doesn't bring you happienss. I am doing what I want to do now, and for the time making less money.

To go back to the orignal question, I would not attempt to fly for a living without a degree if you plan on or want to fly for the majors. Could it be done- sure, but why sell yourself short in a market that is already hard to find any paying job.

At my last job I was at a Directors level and managed a group of around 15 and had clients and sources all over the world. When I interviewed people to work with me, the degree was a non-issue. I wanted someone that I thought could communicate, work indepently and that would continue to learn throughout the years. Some of the best people I ever hired didn't have degrees.

All this being said, I do want to get me degree someday- just to say I did it.

 

[jsoceanlord]

someone mentioned richard branson; he was never asked for a resume, so i heard that he never asks applicants for one. but he's an ex hippy.

to me, college shows an employer you're a little less free spirited and enslaved and have to pay off your tuition and are less likely to walk, etc ,etc, etc.

in latin america it's who you know, not what you know.

ATP's used to be a rare requirement for jobs, now it's almost mandatory

i'm in the 10% group of pilots without a degree

 

[brett]

I believe in the 80/20 rule:

About 80% of people having degrees are intelligent, capable, reliable, and professional. The other 20% are not.

People without advanced education reverse the percentages.

You can't rule out one group altogether, because there are gems and bums in both groups. But if you are an employer hiring people for an important job, one your customers need to be able to trust also - which goody bag do you want to pull from?

- Brett