FlyingGuide

Should have mentioned that before. Not a ton of things to do at UND. It is flat and cold. I felt in the end, this kept me focused on school and my career goals. UND Hockey is really fun to watch. I had a lot of fun at UND, but it made me realize how much I like Washington.

An MEI is a valuable certificate. Added multi experience and knowledge that you will use for the rest of your career.

BHopper88

UND no longer has a buddy buddy relationship with Cirrus after they went to an all Cessna training fleet.

I went to UND, and I enjoyed my time there, they have a lot of great resources but have to admit after I graduated and got out of the bubble that is UND I learned you could do the same training outside of the "factory" for a lot cheaper and faster or at your own pace.

As for the atmosphere of going to school there I really liked it. From the smaller class sizes, the D1 hockey and football, to the small town/school feel, I really enjoyed my time there. Just be prepared for some of the coldest weather you have ever felt if you are not from the area. You sometimes get the isolated feel when the weather gets bad with the blizzards. Its not the cold but the wind that makes the weather so bad. But summers are great, except for the monster mesquitos.

WalkOfShame

Just to give you an idea of the weather.... when I went to the airport this morning at 8am it was -20*F out and the wind chill was -40*F. Now don't be scared off just by that. These temps are usually only around from Dec through Feb. It starts to warm up in March and then by the time summer roles around, its in the 80's. The only up side to the cold temps in the winter is the great aircraft performance. 1300ft/min climb in an arrow is nice.

Weather aside, there is not too much to do in grand forks. If you enjoy hockey (or want to learn about it) you'll fit right in. Compared to WA, its can be boring. But you'll stay busy flying (at least 3 days a week) and going to class. PM me if you have any other specific questions.

waflyboy

Three months of sub zero antarctic living? If there's any reason to choose CWU over UND, this is it. You North Dakotans are crazy. But I'll give you props for the breeding stock... errr.... ladies in Fargo.

WalkOfShame

You'd be amazed what you can adapt too for weather. Thank God I'm not a native.

scorpion611

Wow just thinking about those kinds of temperatures gives me goosbumps. It's +64 here now.

here is a list of all the aviation colleges/universitys in Washington with a professional pilot programm.

Washington
Big Bend Community College (in Moses Lake) offer Associate's Degree or Bachelor's Degree
Central Washington University (in Ellensburg) offer Bachelor's Degree
Green River Community College (in Auburn) offer Associate's Degree
Moody Aviation Dept Of Missionary Aviation Tech (in Spokane) offer Bachelor's Degree
Northwest Aviation College (in Auburn) offer Associate's Degree
Spokane Falls Community College (in Spokane) offer Bachelor's Degree
Walla Walla College (in Walla Walla) offer Associate's Degree or Bachelor's Degree

PM me if you want the other states as well

RomeoSierra

The weather is cold in Ellensburg where CWU is located too. Not as cold as UND though. During the winter expect lots of snow and below 0 f. During the spring you can expect to become a master at landing in 20 knot plus winds that are gusting up to 25 knots. This is on a regular basis so it will become second nature to you.
Great for when you go to a flight school that doesnt like to fly in 15 knot winds then you can show up the senoir instructors.
CWU also lets you fly in some really seinic areas too.
Mt Ranier, Mt St Helens, Mt Adams, the whole Cascade Mountain range.

A320fan

I'm also currently at UND working on my instrument rating. So far, what everyone else has been saying is pretty much the lot. Its COLD (like painfully cold where it literally hurts to stand outside) and there isn't too much to do in Grand Forks, but I do have a slight appreciation for it since it's kept me focused on studying and classes. As far as the flying goes, the cold is actually nice for it since you get such great performance (I took off with less than 450 feet for my solo), and the aircraft usually heats up nicely during your runup.

Good luck with your search and let me know if you have any other questions about UND.

Colin

lear 31 pilot

I went to Big Bend Community College and got all my rating thru CFII and then went to Central Washington and got my bachelors degree but did not do any flying thru there program. I believe BBCC was about half the price of CWU and our graduates are employed at all the major airlines. Right now I suggest that you go to the cheapest place you can find because no college can get you a job right now.

DClark

Our aviation program has a DTA (Direct Transfer Agreement) with Big Bend CC. This means that you can do all of your flight training at Big Bend and take classes at Big Bend, some of which are Central classes, and then you can graduate with a Bachelor of Science in Flight Technology from Central Washington University. The flight training at Big Bend is cheaper, however after talking with them it sounds like the cost might go up there due to the state budget cuts.

Feel free to email with any questions.