Is a design degree acceptable for pilot jobs
 

Hello there, I am new to this forum. Thanks for reading.

I have a question about educational background to be qualified in becoming a commercial airplane pilot. I know now you need a college degree to become a pilot, but I never know what degree airlines are looking for.

I am currently in college studying Animation and Visual Effect. It is a major that do 3D modeling of objects and characters and you animate your character, like those you see in video games or movies like Toy Story. I always thought majors like Computer Science or any Engineering is what they are looking for. Is that true ?

Thanks for answering in advance.

Any degree, it doesn't really matter as long as you have the qualifications. Thats for most regionals. You don't even really need a degree to fly at a lot of places but if you ever want to play in the big boy sandbox you will need the credentials. I'm working on a business degree. Does it have an ounce to do with flying an airplane? No.

The only time you really need an aviation degree I would think is if you wanted to be a test pilot of sorts (Aerospace Engineering Degree) or manage an aviation business or airline or something (Airport Management).

It is usually advisable to stay away from getting any sort of aviation degree when being a pilot. If you ever get furloughed or decide to leave the profession (a very real possibility) then it helps to have something to fall back on. And an aviation degree won't get you very far in most circles outside of aviation.

Thanks for the response.

I see what you mean, I know they will teach you everything you need to know at the academy but I thought only formal degree is acceptable.

As you can see, Animation / Visual Effect is not like those "formal" majors. I always thought math oriented majors like computer science and engineering benefit it more. Even business or accounting is formal education as well.

But as for art and design majors, like animation or graphic design. There is no math involved what so ever (you do need to take math class but not the advanced once).

I could see geometry helping in flying - intercept angles, radials, etc. I would also think your degree would be helpful - 3D space is what you're flying in, and if you can "picture" that in your brain using the instruments, you'll get the situational awareness "sense" needed.

As far as the airlines, (from reading this forum), it's just a check box for them, and a fall back career for you.

Best of luck!

Exactly which academy are you talking about here?

There is a long standing debate on whether technical degrees make better pilots.

Aeronautical engineering is not the standard aviation degree that people usually talk about when discussing good or bad degrees. It is an engineering type degree - which is always good. At least in the military, I think you must have a *technical* type of degree if I remember right, but I never applied because I don't and am not a engineering type of person! :o

USMCFLYR

A design/graphics degree would be fine as far as getting a pilot job.

IMO a pilot should have a backup degree to fall back on though, so this means something practical like accounting, pharmacy, computer programming, nursing, etc. If you can make a living with a design degree, go for it. Like certain other fields you can probably stay current by doing part-time work so you can rapidly transition to to full time if (when) you need to.

The odds are against you remaining continuously employed as a pilot for 40 years.

Thanks. I am guessing you are comparing moving objects with the X, Y, and Z axis in Autodesk Maya is like lift, weight, thrust, and drag in moving plane ?

I meant the academy that you go to in order to become a pilot. Too bad I dont know anyone that work as a pilot or in airline industry in general, but I just know they require a unspecified college degree and then you will need to be trained. In Hong Kong, you will have to go to Australia for that training.

There are only two careers that interest me. One is being a 3D modeler and animator for video game company, one is becoming a plane pilot. I am not doing double major or doing a minor in school is because my another "major" in my mind is the pilot training, and I need a degree first. So I am thinking after obtaining an Animation degree, I will apply for a pilot. But is a design degree ok in America ? What about let say, I want to be a pilot for Cathy Pacific ?

So you mean pilots are wont stay employed after 40 years ?

Thanks everyone.

If you want to be a test pilot, you need an engineering degree. The "aeronautical/aviation/airway studies/science/etc" is only useful if you want to work dispatch/operations, lower management, some industry jobs that require general aviation knowledge, some FAA jobs that require the same, and so on. Some of these jobs require heavily on other forms of experience, but the degree is helpful. Where it's not so helpful is as a pilot, there's not much reason to and most of these jobs are far more steady than pilot jobs, so when the pilot job falls through, you need a degree OTHER than aviation to pull you through. In other words, the airlines don't care (as stated above) and you're putting all your stones in one basket, and this is about the worst industry to do that in.

More like where I am and where stuff (nav ids, airports, traffic) is.

If your degree is from an accredited university you should be fine. The majors don't ask about your degree. It's checking a box in order to be competitive among the other applicants.

And in a few years who even knows if the degree check box will matter. With the 1500 hour rule and a possible "shortage" of pilots (which is highly debatable) many regionals may be so desperate that they don't really care too much about a degree. This is a time of great change in the industry, so no one knows for sure what will come of it.

And as far as an aviation career not being 40 years... You could lose your medical, get in trouble with the law, or any other number of things to make you an "unacceptable hire". Not to mention the likelihood of being furloughed a couple times and getting sick of the low pay coupled with no upward progression for a number of years. It isn't exactly easy if you have a family either. You might come home one day to find the kids hate you/don't care about you and the wife is bangin the mailman. It happens all too often in this line of work.

But remember, the airlines aren't the only flying jobs out there. There is corporate, charter, FAA, Ferry flying, flight-instruction, and a number of other things. And this profession has introduced me to some of the best people I've gotten to know throughout my life thus far. Where else can you be around other highly-motivated "go-getters" like in this career? But you should do a lot of research. There are a lot of variables and being a pilot is by no means an easy task.