FODhopper

How many people date/marry doctors or lawyers...they have epic debt.

Mesabah

They can go the public service route, and get loan forgiveness. A regional pilot who doesn't make the majors may never get out of debt.

HighFlight

$797 mil in 2017. $758 mil in 2016. Not quite there yet.

Fun fact - name a major airline that has never merged nor furloughed a pilot.

Mesabah

Has Jetblue ever furloughed, I can't recall if they have?

Fourpaw

Southwest Airlines

Crap just realized merged.

TalkTurkey

EDV3413, DAL0212, N606LR, ship number 5173 on May 1 traded paint. That is all.

TalkTurkey

I just bang them. I never marry. that would be stupid and counter productive to 21st century living. Just google Tom Leykis and listen.

Baradium

Did you just justify not getting a degree because you are worried mainline would not hire someone with college debt... when you are almost guaranteed they wouldn't hire someone without the degree?

I'll also say, there is a lot more to it when you rack up that much debt. You can get a degree for less than 10% of that. Someone going to a big name expensive school doesn't all degree costs make.

Mesabah

Where can you get a worthwhile degree for less than $25K? My degree was about $35K, but today, that same college, same major is $125K.
This absolute parabolic rise in tuition is caused by degree inflation, and it will eventually drive the economy into the dirt, and the airlines into another lost decade.
I'm singling out the airlines here because it is an airline forum, but this applies to all jobs where a degree in "anything", is being required.

I flew with a guy whom had $275K in Riddle debt, and the default rate of 14% interest, he can't discharge that debt in bankruptcy. At his current payment plan, that's $1.2 million in total debt over his career.

Baradium

Smaller not as famous schools tend to cost less. My base tuition was $1200 a semester where I went, starting in 2001. That puts it at under $10,000 in tuition for 4 years, even doubling that to account for books etc and you're under $20,000. And this was a large 4 year institution that just didn't have a big name football team or only specialize in aviation.

I do see now they have a per hour scale, with 15 hours costing around $4500, which does increase those costs significantly. But it still means a 4 year degree for well under 6 figures is possible, even accounting for additional expenses. (I come up with $36,000 in tuition at that rate)

When you start adding in aviation programs, flight time costs increase the money spent by a large amount but you'd be spending flight training money regardless, so it's more a matter of whether they are charging more than market for aircraft and instructors (mine was less than the FBO).

When you start looking at smaller community colleges that have 4 year degree programs you can still get a degree for a reasonable amount IMO. Many schools also now have correspondence courses which someone can use while they have a career to get a degree while they're working.

I do not think Riddle costs are appropriate for an overall degree discussion as they are known for being a very expensive school. Might as well use base tuition costs for an ivy league school and imply it covers everywhere else as well. When I went to school a riddle education was more per semester than my entire education for their fees. Currently ERAU in Daytona charges $17,196 for 12-16 credit hours. $16,332 if you graduated high school in Florida. On top of that, they have higher housing costs associated with their location. I didn't sample every state, but it seems that $5000 a semester is a reasonable tuition that you can achieve with a 15 hour course load. That would be $40,000 for 4 year program tuition cost, doubling that to take care of potential expenses does put you up to $80,000, but that would be $45,000 below your number and many times lower than a riddle one.

In transparency I'm trying to account for living expenses, books etc and be generous with the numbers. Are you including those numbers in your school's fees?