Hi there gentlemen,

So about a year ago I decided I wanted to become a pilot. It something I've been wanting to do since I was little. But never was too serious about due to poor eyesight. Until I learned different.

Anyway I'm here looking for tips and information on flight schools in the US and Canada. Right now I'm living in the Netherlands but prices here are just to high for me. I'm a 19 years old holding a high school diploma and a minor in IT. The financial picture I'm working with are about $25,000 I got in savings and another $10,000 my parents are willing to invest by the end of next year. Is there anything reasonable I can achieve out there with these supplies?
My only requirement is to find a school with a decent college/university in it's local area making me able to combine my studies while taking lessons. And favorable locations would be NJ, NY, Mass, Florida, California, Washington State and Ontario. Though I wouldn't be surprised if these were the more expensive areas. So don't limit yourself to those.

For anyone wanting to mention any schools in Europe no need to bother since I'm planning on studying in the US even if it isn't to become a pilot. Oh and I hold both Dutch and American nationalities if this makes any difference. And I was wondering if someone could fly in Canada with a license obtained in the US and viceversa?


Any advice would be appreciated & cheers!

 

What ratings are you hoping to achieve? Becoming a pilot even in the states is very expensive. $35,000 won't get you very far in todays economy as a pilot and much less go to college and fly unless you want to be a student pilot for a few years. I am not trying to discourage you, just telling you what I see.

Either way, if you are considering going to college in the states, then I suggest you go to a college with an aviation program. Even if perhaps the rates are higher than going to a mom and pop school, you can be certain the planes are well taken care of, have a good study environment, and you will have less things to figure out since its right there. As an international student, I know it gets pretty hard being somewhere completely different than what you are used to.

If you are interested in colleges with flight programs
Aviation College and Aviation Degree Programs

Interested in just flight schools
Flight School and Pilot Training Directory

One thing about Florida though, it has the highest number of flight schools in the country I think, so that would be your best bet to find a flight school near a college.

Yes you can, but you would be flying internationally so you would need to do lots of paperwork, go through customs and some other stuff I think. You also couldn't work for someone like Air Canada if you had an FAA certificate I think, so it depends who you wan't to work for.