Agreed - but you slanted that question.
If we are comparing GPA's - those people ought to be asking themselves between two people with the wet commercials, and one has the 3.8 and the other a 2.2 then who is likely to get the nod?
Of course then there is the question if the 3.8 was in Art and the 2.2 in Aero Engineering. Will the aero guy even get a chance to explain his case or will the computer just slice him out of the pack? The number is the first thing they see and you often don't have the chance to fix a bad first impression.

I do agree that the GPA (if that is a factor in the hiring equation) should become less and less of a factor the longer the person as ben out of the academic world. REAL WORLD performance is much more important imo - but that takes time and opportunity.

USMCFLYR

 

You make a good point. There is a big difference in getting a 3.0 in math, engineering, or physics compared to a 3.0 in art or the many other easy fields of study. I would sure hope recruiters are smart enough to figure this out on their own though.

 

Your assumption of an art degree being 'easy' is not true. Paint some pretty pictures and get an A, is not realistic. I have been on both sides.

Depending on your school, any degree could be easy or hard depending on the curriculum.

 

Actually my assumption of an art degree being way easier than an engineering, math, or physics degree is true. I have been on both sides.

 

I'm sure that any degree has its' challenges, but there isn't much discourse in saying that usually the *technical* degrees are considered 'harder' than the rest. It can even go back to the left brain / right brain concepts, the black and white or the grey, the people good with numbers and others good with ideas. It takes all sorts, but we are talking in general terms here though some will always post with the exceptions that they have heard or experienced. I still say that you are safer playing the percentages if this is the game you are interested in. Some can, some can't. I could never had gotten an engineering degree I'm quite sure.

USMCFLYR

 

Help keep that lie going. Herby Diddle needs new golden ashtrays for the $100 bills they used to light their Cuban cigars with. Being a pilot does not require you have a degree. The airlines that want you to have one only will until the supply of fools dries up. You know, the ones that wasted 4 years of their life and enough dough to buy a house at Riddle or UND. This is a vocational job. And that's an insult to other vocational jobs that actually pay a decent wage.

If you have to wait until your career is almost over to finally get that sweet gig (Major Cpt) is it all really worth it? Most current airline pilot wannabes will NEVER see a major captain seat. That I promise you. History proves me right.

 

Okay, I swear that this comes up more often than a 'Should I go to... / Benefits of.../ ANR for CR7... / ERAU Worth It? thread...

Is being a profesional aviator a vocation? Yes, the same way being a physician is a 'vocation,' and the same way a Juris Doctor is a 'vocation.' Per Webster: "A vocation is a person's employment or main occupation, esp. regarded as particularly worthy and requiring great dedication." So by very definition we are all practicing a vocation, and I do not find it appropriate to bring down others chosen careers, in other fields, by putting a derogatory tone on a very complimentary term.

I am a large proponent to a 4 year college degree, not just because I have one, but any kind - Aviation, Online, University, anything. A close friend whom works for a fortune 100 company in recruiting, does not care about the degree, and can even override the required degree when hiring, but can not override having the degree. They are concerned with your individual experience, and how it satisfies the job description. They want too see that in four years, you learned how to think outside the box, how to work with others, how you acted when defeated, also how you acted when you won. They want to see how you matured when living on your own, they want to see that you involved yourself in activities outside of the coursework to see whom you really are.

Here are a few good examples. A paralegal is a great job, requires hard work, and a firm knowledge of various cases, and a knowledge of how and why the law is what it is. Could a paralegal pass the bar - probably, then why cant they do so and practice? Law school! This is to prove that you have the formal education, and were taught the requirements to practice law, and become licensed. Another good example is a medical assistant, once again, could they pass the RN practical, probably again, but they do not have the proof that they where taught all requirements of becoming a registered nurse. Is a degree going to help me in the flare when landing, no. The same way an RN is not required when administering a flew vaccine. But what about when an RN saves a patient going into cardiac arrest, or when the Number 2 engine on a DC10 explodes rendering all 3 hydraulic systems useless. I want the graduate whom learned how to think critically, and was challenged regularly by professors, and how to challenge the established norms.

But what about doctors, after they graduate medical school and are in residency working 100+ hour weeks, and making just 40K a year. They have all the responsibility with out the 6 figure salary nor the country club membership. Or the public defender, whom spends their 'vocation' representing people whom otherwise would be at the mercy of the gavel. I guarantee these lawyers do not wear Brooks Brothers suit's, in corner offices that over look D Street.

The BA 2011 advert, 'To fly, To Serve' has been brought up many times on this board as giving goose bumps to many members, and those crews being the epitome of professionals, well guess what!?! Their job description is the same as mine! You can not tell me they are professionals, and I am not one.

Unfortunately the industry has changed for the worse here in the states in terms of benefits and compensation, but if you desire the figurative Brooks Brother suit, or the country club membership, there are great opportunities in Asia, and the Middle East. If you do not want to uproot your family and are content with the department store suit, or golfing at a public track, great, then be grateful you have any job. Studies prove that how you think of your self, is the same as others perceive you, which is why it is so important to be passonate about everything you do, and to think of yourself as a professional!

Cheers!

 

Well since Red Forman says so. He is the barometer on all that is 'higher education'.

 

What's interesting is the interaction between faculty and student at ERAU (I can't speak for UND, etc). The facility willfully expresses how much of an advantage the students have over almost everyone else when competing for airline jobs. The students soak it up like a sponge and continue to fork out thousands of dollars on classes and flight training. I'm a veteran using the 9/11 GI Bill, so my entire tuition and the remaining ratings I needed were completely covered and paid for, which is my only reason for attending ERAU. If I had to pay out of pocket I would have ran as far as a could from the school. You'd be surprised what a $3,500 3 credit class offers. The "technical" degree at ERAU isn't that difficult, although there a some difficult classes. I know of several people who are excellent pilots but are below average students, and I know some excellent students who have taken over 2 college years to complete their instrument rating.

 

OK I will.
Why don't you list the major airlines (since that is a majorities goal) that haven't hired a large majority of their pilots with degrees in the past - let's say YOUR lifetime.

Not the friend of a friend's girlfriend - not the one in a thousand even who knew the right person and got on without a degree - but the MAJORITY numbers. If you are the kind that likes to play straight-up black 13 on the roulette table then maybe you will eventually win; but your chances are greatly diminished.

A degree will help get you to where the best pay, the best work rules, and the best QOL will reside for a MAJORITY of the people.

What history proves you right? Are you contending that right now (and in some time period that can actually make for an statistical sample) that MOST FO's have never seen Captain?

USMCFLYR