Airline Pilot Forums

Hey guys,

I'm currently on AD in the AF as an enlisted dude. I've got some flight time, but I've realized that I'm not going to become a rated officer for various reasons that I will not discuss right now. I have about 2.5 years left on my enlistment that will put me at 10 years total active service. Before I punch out, I would like to finish grad school. I already have an MBA program lined up at NCU that is totally fundable by TA and is attainable online. My only problem is there are no aviation based programs there.

I understand the whole do not get an aviation degree if you are a pilot thing, but I really am not, save for the few hours that I have civilian. I do have a serious interest in aviation and the business aspect of it and I think I would do very well in ERAU's program. My main beef is that I'd have to dip into my GI Bill benefits to do that due to the cost.

Do you guys think that it is worth it?

Remember, I do not seek out to become a paid pilot of any sort. Please keep that in mind if you give any advice.

Thanks

Honestly, an ERAU masters degree isn't all that special. I have one, and so do about 5,000 other USAF pilots. They're convenient, covered by military tuition assistance, and in a field that we all can relate to, which makes them a little bit easier than a lot of other masters programs.

I'm not sure that an ERAU masters in aviation will help you land a great paying civilian job. It's better than not having any masters degree though.

I'd look into an MBA at an AACSB accredited school. Not just a Touro MBA. Touro (and a lot of the other easier schools) aren't AACSB accredited. More rigorous schools are harder to get into, more expensive, and require GREs and actual applications. Touro and ERAU just require that your tuition check doesn't bounce.

I'll reiterate what riddler just said. I just finished my Master's at ERAU. I think you can get more "bang for your buck" elsewhere and have a degree that is respected by many more. ERAU is not difficult, it is very expensive though. Even with all my credit for FTU, SOS, I still was out of pocket around 4 grand. It's likely you won't get as much transfer credit as I had for AF courses so you'll have to take more courses and spend more of your hard earned money.

I'd think very long before tapping GI bill funds. If you have kids it will be much more advantageous to them ~15 years from now than for you now.

IMO, get out, and go to the best in-residence non-aviation MBA program you can get into. I did a full time MBA while on AD (U of AZ). While I learned a lot, my AD responsibilities somewhat marginalized the amount I learned and retained. Unfortunately, institution name means everything in the marketability of your MBA. Don't dilute your efforts or spread yourself too thin. Set yourself up for success and focus on one thing at a time. In regards to B-School: earn a high GPA at a top 10 institution.