Does college mean anything to the airlines?
 

I am going on my finale year at a community college and I am just curious is it even worth it to go for another two years?

Double post

It is. I wouldn't be too anxious to leave school just yet. ;)

To the regionals? No. As long as you have 1500 hours, that's all they care about.

To the majors? Yes. Even if you somehow managed to get hired without a degree, it would more than likely be at the end of the hiring wave, after all the more qualified candidates have been hired.

I never finished college and it limited my employment opportunity in the Major airline industry...But, I would say I have had a more successful career than most...I've been a widebody captain flying all over the world since my 20s...I never relied on my employer for retirement, so I've invested wisely...The pilot group I fly with for the most part is outstanding and a pleasure to fly with. My company is like all the others and think pilots are a commodity and not a profession. We're not fighting about seniority numbers or which merged airline bought who...I'm lucky...And that's all....finish college because it's now the new high school diploma.

Compass is really big on education, and GPA. More now than before. I can only think of a handful of guys hired without a 4-yr, or with a GPA below 3.0.

I think the trend is toward an emphasis in education, even at the regionals.

A very simplified way to look at it is that airlines pick the most qualified of applicants they have apply to them.

What matters is how your resume stands up compared to your competition. When thousands of people are applying for hundreds of jobs, you have to stand out. If you don't have something big like that when most of your competition does, you're not going to get picked first, if at all.

You're spending the next 30 years of your life at a regional airline and their requirements never mention a college degree. It doesn't matter what a mainline wants, you and 90% of everyone else aren't getting there anyway.

If you really want in this garbage career get your seniority number at crap regional X and hopefully someday you'll get weekends off.

Lol tell us how you really feel

Right until your regional shuts down because it has too many lifers and thus is too expensive... regionals as a career is a poor choice in this day and age.

Who said it was a choice? Regionals ARE the career now except for the very small % of fortunate guys who pull their golden ticket and escape this mess. This isn't pre-911, might as well play the lotto because you're going to have to get real lucky to land at a legacy.

A trueism for sure. Unfortunately, when airlines hire everybody gets a job. When not hiring nobody gets hired. Your career is all about timing. I have a 4 year degree, no violations, etc. Hasn't done me any good as airlines haven't hired in 10 years.

Now they are hiring. Take the job now with a regional and school part time for the degree. Lots of online degree options at major schools are available.

Reminds me of the old joke "By the time I got out of college all the good jobs were taken".

Yes, you'll need the 4-year degree for the majors.

No, the regionals are not a viable career choice (unless you got hired in 1983 at somewhere other than COMAIR/ACA and will retire before 2020).

You can however finish the degree while flying for a regional IF you are single/childless and can stay that way, and are willing to focus all your energy to get 'er done.

standby for some of the APC membership to post something like:

College is not needed. Your time is spent better learning to master flying, improving your stick and rudder skills, and building total time, over the four years you would be in college earning a degree

I am a (insert) 777/747/A340/787 Captain and frankly, made Captain at age 29, all without college. As a matter of fact, I didn't even intend to become a (insert above aircraft) Captain nor even an airline pilot, it just kinda worked out that way and the job was offered to me.

Oh, and networking is not important.

Amen brother

Not directed at you satpak - but all of the above MAY be true.
It will even happen for someone on this board; BUT, some people will win the lottery too. It doesn't mean that you should plan your retirement around that long shot. Telling someone that they don't need a degree for the better paying jobs IS TRUE TO SOME EXTENT.
Telling someone they don't need to invest for retirement IS ALSO TRUE TO SOME EXTENT. Neither are the smart move and at least MOST everyone should agree with that. ;) If you like to play the longest odds possible at Roulette in Vegas - then don't get a degree and see if you can make it. Winner, winner, chicken diner - but most go home hungry.

Yes I agree.

May not be viable but they're the ONLY choice if you want to fly for an airline. The chances of going to a legacy are far too small to hope for a career there. Time to face the facts, 90% of us in the regionals will retire there.

When was the last time majors hired? I fly with 10-15 year captains all the time who have been trying to leave the whole time and are now getting to an age where that's impossible. I don't think most people who have made a career out of the regionals ever intended to actually do that.

I'm lucky because I'm still young, but I've been flying for 12 years and with our current upgrade time it will be at least another 8 before I can leave the regionals. Anyone 10 years older than me probably isn't going anywhere if they're hired today at a regional. This IS the career now.

The contracts negotiated due to industry status at the time have caused many of the problems at the regional level.

Get the degree. Its worth the experience and will get you to the middle of the pile instead of the bottom.

Agreed 4 year degree is a good investment

I was lucky enough to make it into the regionals before this 1500 rule. I got a job with 292 hours...22 hours multi. I had a 4 year degree from Florida Institute of Technology and I was honest with the interviewer and he said that my honesty and educational background went a long way to giving the thumbs up on hiring me.

So if you have 1500 hours and a 4 year degree, I would say you have preference over a 2000+ hour guy (with similar flight background) that doesn't have the degree on his resume...

In the current climate you can get hired at a regional as long as you have a pulse. A college degree is totally unnecessary.

Sure, as long as you plan on staying at a regional.

To pick a Legacy -
Delta General Requirement: Graduate of a four-year degree program from a college or university accredited by a U.S Department of Education recognized accrediting organization.

Regionals will choose college grads when the market allows them to be picky. College grads are likely to leave after a few years as a CA, keeping longevity costs lower. HS grads are very likely to be lifers, and will drive longevity costs up.

I don't think Regionals will be able to afford college grads anymore. Heck, they won't be able to afford HS grads with an ATP. "Desirable" majors could be picky about degrees, but even they will become much more flexible with min. quals.

One can only hope, but I'm still listening for the sucking sound...

As I've stated multiple times it doesn't matter where you "plan" to stay. The regionals will be the highest career we ever achieve in the airline industry. The "stepping stone" no longer exists. So by all means get your college degree, hell I would give you mine if I could. Your end result will be the same, applying for decades at majors only to never get called for an interview and end up retiring at whatever regional you worked for.

34000 Legacy/FDX/UPS pilots retire in the next 15 years.

There are currently 24000 pilots at the regionals and large fractionals.

If you're under 40 the only reason you don't move on is if you really don't want to (We all know the guys that complain about not getting hired but only apply to one airline and defiantly avoid job fairs or anything that will get them noticed).

This is my route. I'm enrolling at Aerosim in January and once I get a gig instructing somewhere I'm going to school online at night.

I think the underlying theme of this discussion is securing a job at a legacy-type major IE AA, SWA, DAL, etc. FDX/UPS needs to be in that list also.

With that said, the following need to be analyzed

1. Will the 34,000 retiring pilots be replaced one for one, especially in light of mergers etc. In almost all cases, mergers cause duplicity and over-staffing. Some companies (FDX I believe) have come out and said they are presently overstaffed.

2. Will every 24,000 Regional and Frax pilot attempt to go to the majors/legacies

3. Those that do, will create openings at, well, Frax/Regionals. But it is yet to be seen if a 22 year old starting flight school today, will see a "pilot shortage" at the majors

4. No one can predict future oil prices/business growth, etc.

etc. while a "pilot shortage" may indeed be in the works, a "legacy applicant shortage" will never exist, ever

Being 17, I hope this is the case..

Get off the forum and get back to studying.

Does college mean anything to the airlines?
 

Slightly off topic ...... And I don't want to fire anyone up.....but honest question from a non airline pilot ....... What are some reasons a career at a regional shouldn't be a plan or a decent option? Assuming of course that you don't get furloughed or the company doesn't fold. I personally know a few senior regional captains (old neighbor is one )........has been there all his life.....loves it, and said he has no desire to move to mainline......not to mention he does well.....wife, kids, great house. Not only him ...... I've talked to a few that were very satisfied at a regional after some longevity and an extra stripe

Mesaba is a great example, making 120k a year and living in base. Now Endeavor making $87 and shrinking

Does college mean anything to the airlines?
 

Ouch......are regional pay scales shrinking across the board ? Even at captain level ?