Originally Posted by
chrisreedrules
Go be an air traffic controller. You'll make more money up front in your career (which the dirty little secret to gaining wealth and saving for retirement is starting early). Hard to do much financial planning on atrocious FO pay. Go be an air traffic controller and fly for fun in your free time. You'll still enjoy your time in the air and it won't become "just a job" like it does for so many. My .02
Easier said than done, my friend. The FAA is worse than the majors when it comes to hiring based on demographics. You can ace the AT-SAT, but still not get picked up because the FAA had too many (insert gender or racial profile here) at the time to maintain their diversity standards. I heard they got sued for it a while back.
FAA Sued Over Controller Hiring - AVweb flash Article
IF you want to make money in aviation, stay away from anything involving the operation or maintenance of anything airplane related.