snipeya66

I'm 17 yrs old and about to enter my senior year of high school. I haven't taken any flying lessons yet. Flying caught my eye last year when I was traveling to California for vacation. I would one day love to be a pilot for a major airline. I have been researching various training possibilities for a couple of months now. I would really appreciate some advice from people who have been trained at college or at a flight school. I don't know which one to choose because I live in Indiana where there are no real flight schools close, but I have Purdue two hours away. So I'm asking, what's the better route? Flight school or a 4-yr college. I've heard Purdue has a well-recognized flight program. Any elaborations on this would be great whether they are good or bad.
How hard is it to enter into a college like Purdue for flight training? Does Purdue have a good record of producing top pilots that excel in their careers?
Or should I go to a flight school in Florida or out west and just do online courses? I'm going to get a college degree either way, I just don't know which path would be more logical.
Also. Are computer based flight simulators like Microsoft Flight Simulator X any help?

rickair7777

The only schools which have a repuation for producing top-notch pilots are the military flight schools. With military training you are MUCH more marketable for the better jobs.

While some university programs like to blow thier own horns, they usually do not provide enough value added for the extra money they charge.

You WILL need a 4-year degree, so purdue might be good for you in that regard since it's nearby. If that's not cost effective, then look into a state school and do flight training on the side while in college.

PC-based flight simulators can be useful for PRACTICING a very-narrow range of flight skills used in instrument flying: procedures and instrument scan. They are NOT useful for actually learning the stuff, only for practicing skills which have been taught correctly in a real simulator or airplane.

See this thread for moe info on pursuing an airline career: Career Advice (Paralysis by Analysis)

NonRev4Life

Go to AOPA Online: Training & Safety and look up some flight schools/ colleges. I have heard that Purdue was a good school and SIUC.edu is a good college that is fairly close that has a good aviation program.

My recommendation, is while you are in your senior year take a few flight lessons at a local fixed based operator (usually any small airports have them) and see how you like flying. There the flight instructor can answer any questions that you have. If you really like it then start either applying to colleges that have aviation programs, that way you won't really have a problem switching majors. Also look into the military and see how well that would fit your needs, but don't let recruiters talk you into doing something other than being a pilot. They are tricky like that, I almost became a airtraffic controller for the marines....which means I would have been on the ground with a gun in my hands getting shot at.

Last recommendations is get a degree in something other than aviation, in case of unexpected furloughs, strikes and so forth.

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timman19

Avoid getting an aviation degree. I totally agree with NonRev4Life on that one and the reasons he listed. I have such a degree from ERAU and can tell you that it really hasn't made that much of a difference in my career.

I hear a lot of good things about Purdue these days so that could be a good choice for you.

Good luck!

USMCFLYR

Now Now Now NonRev.......no trickery there
Everyone knows that you are a Marine first and a pilot second......so there should have been no doubt that you would end up with a rifle in your hands at some point!!

One other thing about getting an Aviation degree though that most don't bring up but made a difference to **ME** in **MY** situation.

It seems that I was having a tough time finding something that interested me in school and if it doesn't interest me then I struggle some with my attention. Luckily for **ME** I found out about my college's aviation degree program (Oklahoma State) and for my last 1.5 years I was much more motivated and enjoyed school and therefore did much better than I would have had I stayed with my Wildlife Ecology degree.

In my situation - I needed good grades and what my degree has been in hasn't affected my career (military of course) or my future employment opportunities (hopefully).

Now before anyone else says it......I know that my situation has been different; but my point has been don't forget to study something that INTERESTS you in college and hopefully that something is also something that you can make a living at. That is my own failing - - I have no plan B.

USMCFLYR

snipeya66

What about doing a double major? One in Aviation Technology and one in something else.
Or would this still be too time consuming?

Marvin

Do you have any interest in flying for the military? If so, how is your eyesight/health? Do you have good grades?

There are a number of routes to get military pilot training, and you can get a degree in pretty much whatever you want. It's not necessarily a cake walk getting a pilot slot, but it is do-able if you are persistent.

Of course, you might get shot at somewhere down the line, so you'll have to decide if that is something you are willing to accept and embrace.

In my own experience, it was well worth it.

The double-major thing is ok, but my advice would be to just go for one major. I can't speak to the aviation technology thing (I did aerospace engineering at Univ of Fla on my way to USAF pilot training), but you could always go back later and get a Masters degree in something else. My point is, don't spend so much energy on "Plan B" that you lose sight of "Plan A".

If you make about 8 more posts, you will be able to pm -- then, if you like, feel free to drop me a message and we can discuss offline. I suspect there are plenty of other folks here who would be willing to do the same.

snipeya66

My eyesight is ok, I wear contacts. Grades this year have been all A's and two B's, which were in AP Calculus and AP Chemistry II.

PilotJourney

I would take flying lessons at the closest place to get your Private while in high school if you can or wait until the summer after.

As you get your Private you will learn much more about options from other students and the CFI's at your school.

Then next summer, start the process of looking around. You should ALWAYS have a backup plan for a career when getting into ANY career not just aviation. But in aviation I think its even more critical because of health requirements in order to fly.

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Bug Smasher

Just like everyone else here says - diversify. If you read the regional boards, you'll see the outlook for the time being is kind of bleak. It will get better, and you've got plenty of time to watch and time your leap into aviation.

When I was in your shoes, I dragged my mother to an Embry-Riddle presentation at some upscale hotel in Atlanta. I was spellbound at the idea of a school where so many great pilots had been produced; mom was shocked and awed by the prices.

The parents kept me on a short leash and I went to a local 4-year school.

Here's my suggestion. Pursue a basic 4-year degree that's worth something: Accounting, business, education, something like that. Find something you can bear the idea of doing if you need some money for a year or two from time to time. Do your flying lessons at the local airport and knock out your ratings as quick as possible. If you can have your multiengine instructor before you graduate, you're all set.

You've got a lot of good advice posted in reply to your question here. Choose the path you desire, and stick with it. My track had me wandering the country all summer, every summer, and it took a little extra time to get everything done. (finally got multi-commercial at 27, hired by the airline shortly after that.) But.. I worked my way through and walked into an airline career dragging about $15k of debt... not the perfect setup, but better than most of my classmates. That's my biggest bit of advice: minimize your debt in training loans so you don't walk into your first year of airline flying with a monthly loan bill bigger than your paycheck.

Don't laugh. It happens.

And don't scoff at the idea of instructing. I did. I don't now.

Like the others said.. pop in a few short posts to get up to 10, and feel free to IM me if you have any questions. I'm not the greatest idea man here, but I can tell you some mistakes I made and how not to do them

PS: When I go home, I give my momma a big ole' kiss for not letting me go to Riddle. ;-)