I would say do it. I graduated from A&P school in December and now I'm on the job hunt. I will say it's difficult for an entry-level guy to find a job right now, especially the ones that sound the most interesting. I'm like some of you I want to be around GA aircraft. A flight school or a brokerage where I could use my private pilot's license too would be ideal. Those jobs don't seem to exist anywhere in the country right now. It seems like the only one's hiring are the airlines and I've heard the schedule and pay suck for new guys.

There are good things about being a mechanic though. If you want to become a pilot somewhere down the road there's no better way to stay current in the aviation field. Plus in my opinion it would be a huge leg up to have worked on RJs for several years when you find yourself in the pool of guys at airline minimums (especially at your airline). The job can be really fun too, I loved A&P school and I miss it all the time.

There's also a lot you can use an A&P for, not just turning wrenches on planes. There's the world of avionics, which is also really fun and challenging (also where the good $$ is). I also remember hearing about a student from my college who now uses his A&P to work for NASCAR. Basically anything that requires maintenance or a mechanical background, you are in a way qualified for.

I would say in the long run the QOL for an A&P is pretty good. You will eventually move into a position where you're making a decent income. A lot of places have good benefits too. Don't expect to be loaded, but then again you never know. Some websites say A&P's max salary range is around $80K... to me that's doing pretty damn good. So yeah, go out buy some tools and do it. You'll have fun along the way and always have something to fall back on. Your license won't expire until you expire.