The neat thing about studying to become a CFI is that:
1) It should be cheap
2) Making it cheap makes you a better instructor, because you do the work yourself!
If you do it at a local FBO, keep in mind that this is YOUR rating, no other person is getting you through this because YOU are the one who is going to be instructing. So this is what you do to become a good instructor on the cheap.
- Buy the PTS for instructors
- Make a plan that includes the following items and anything else in the PTS required.
- Find a CFI who is able to give you this instruction and run YOUR plan past them.
- Read and tab your FOI...then take the test
- Read and tab your FAR/AIM
- Read and tab the airplane flying handbook
- Create a big binder full of necessary lesson plans and other materials that will be important for you to reference both on your ride and while you instruct.
- Teach your sister what a cold front is, then teach your mom the four forces, then teach PilotPip's mom the four forces!
- Then show your instructor that you can teach.
- And finally, while doing all this, fly a couple times with your instructor and learn how to talk and fly (helps to talk yourself through a route or technique while youre driving too)
If you do all this and use your instructor as a guide...not a crutch, you will be a fantastic CFI who did it on the cheap...not a quick CFI who overpaid for training.
Remember, the CFI is only a small part flying, but a BIG part teaching. People don't fail their ride because they can't fly, they fail because they can't teach.
(ps, about the II and MEI, I would use aviation money to fund those...get paid by being an instructor to get your additional ratings. Plus, most places give you a discount on Sims and aircraft as an employee)