duckdude555

Hello all!

I'm currently a freshman in college and I've been contemplating doing a complete 180 and switching career paths to becoming a professional pilot. Don't worry, I know that these days a B.S. is required in most fields, and I have every intention of getting one. However, I wasn't sure what some of you would recommend I do. Should I start getting all my ratings/flight time now in my spare time at a local airport outside of classes, or should I wait till after I graduate and do one of those "crash-course" ATP flight school and such? What do you think would be cheaper?
Also, does it matter what exactly I get my college degree in? I would have no problem transferring schools into a university that has a professional pilot program, which generally gives an aviation related degree.
All in all, I want to get the best education for my buck!

Thanks for your help!
~Joe

gdpballin

You can go any path you want, in the end you will get the same result which are the ratings you need. No one can tell you what route to take, its what is best for you.

There are a lot of threads on different flight schools and that is for you to research. I highly suggest you get a degree before you enter the industry. It is possible for you to get it while working, but might not be the easiest. (From what I have seen, people say they are gonna get it and wait around a long time before they actually do, if they even go back). I would not recommend getting a professional pilot degree. If you end losing your medical, you will have a worthless degree and probably large loans to pay off.

If I were in your shoes, I would finish college and fly on the side if you have the opportunity to do so. Get as much done as you can throughout college and then decide on what flight school to go to when you get done. Personally, I got a management degree and went to flight school after college. I also knew it was what I wanted to do before I even went to college. It was fairly cheap for me too since I went to community college first. I got done college with little to no loans.

In the end, its about what will work best for you. As I said, I highly suggest getting a degree before coming into the industry and if you can, fly on the side in college. And it does not matter what you have a degree in, as long as it is a bachelors. If you can stay away from pulling out loans throughout the process, even better.

JamesNoBrakes

Being without debt or as little as possible is priceless and gives you a HUGE amount of power in what you are able to do. You won't be forced to work for what is basically indentured servitude and choose the path that gets you to where you want to go, rather than the one that you have to take because you can't pay your bills any other way. This means get your certificates and ratings along the way. Most of us that have been through this will say the same thing. If you take out a bunch of money to buy flying, you are first of all losing the money that you could have been earning during the same period, second, you are paying back interest on the amount, which is like giving an extra 30-40% to the loan holder on top of the amount you borrow, and you just don't need that kind of debt starting out (relatively) early in your life, even though you might think you are an "old dog". It's cheaper to do it this way, even though it might take a little longer for the training, the amount of money you start saving is huge in the long run.

Be careful though, every place that wants your money will try to convince you that you need to get all your ratings FAST and that you need to do it NOW. This is a red flag. Aviation related businesses have been feeding pilots and potential pilots those lines for decades. Decades. There is no rush and you'll be far better off in the long run.

OnCenterline

"aspiraring pilot" Learn to spell. It looks better on a resume: aspiring pilot

More seriously, get a 4 year degree in a non-aviation specialty. Don't finance your flying if you can at all avoid it. Live within your pay check.

If your interest in flying is not all-consuming, or hasn't been for a while, you run the risk of this being a "flavor of the week" endeavor, and it's way too expensive a risk to take. Be certain before you do this, and do it wisely.

kingairfun

First bit of advice... Never ask another pilot for advice.. Too many guys with way to many ego's..

As the first response said.. Many ways to do it.. Choose what is best for you... If you have the $$$ there is nothing wrong with a place like ALLATP's.... You'd probably have more fun doing it at a local FBO, I did, but definitely do what you feel is best for you....

Best of luck.. It's a long road but well worth it in the end

80ktsClamp

100% true.

What is even more true is to make sure you have a degree. There are few things more career limiting than not having a degree.

bedrock

The only problem with "flight training on the side" while you are in college, is that you won't be able to concentrate on it. It will therefore cost you more probably as you won't be able to fly often enough to cement those core skills.

I would recommend getting a job over the summer while still living with mom and dad. Fly every day at your local airport, and make sure you keep up with all the ground work. Personally, I don't recommend doing a ground school first as you have nothing to correlate it with. Another option is to get your sport pilot certificate first, then add on the private pilot. Joining ROTC or the Civil Air Patrol may give you access to military flying clubs, which are cheaper, at bases in your area.

Finally, there are a lot of hucksters in flight training. Don't pay too much up front (to get a discount, for example) and don't get talked into some ab-initio program at this stage. Just concentrate on the private certificate first. Be forewarned, this is a very expensive pursuit which does not pay well.