Diver, my father is an anethesiologist and I have a cousin who is a crna. You are barking up the wrong tree going into this profession. Yes there is a shortage right now but the 5 year outlook in this field is no better. Most schools are putting out close to 75-150 crna's a semester depending on the size of the school. You have to already be a RN prior to entering this field and must score tops on your boards to be accepted into a crna school. Total time if you are not already a RN is between 4-6 years especially if you are required to do an internal medicine rotation. Salaries are also shrinking at a faster rate than pilot salaries due to field saturation. Four years ago crna's just out of school could command a rate of upwards of $100/hr. The crna's my fathers group employs are doing good to make $56 per hour and it can get worse depending on the state. New healthcare legislation makes this field even more volatile. Many of the residents that work at the hospital my father works at are around my age and I am friends with quite a few of them, they are second guessing their career choice and many wonder will they ever be able to pay off their student loans. They are MD's but there are other professions out there with brighter futures than medicine.