No, they want someone who meets FAR minimums! Hence why companies like Airnet and Flight Express hire below 135.243(c) mins and employ these guys until they get 135 mins.

Flying 'scheduled' type 135 freight is no harder then flying sic in a 121 airline IMO. Once you've done the same route over, and over, and over again it's all the same. No new real experience takes place. Guys at the airport where I used to work would fly the same 180 mile leg up in the morning and down at night. Whoppee.

That being said, flying for a 135 company that goes to many different places, without warning, is truly a much better job experience wise for sure. I'm sure the pay reflects that.

I went from college to a 135 job, and then to a regional. Have times changed that much now? Man that was only 8 years ago!!!

I graduated from one of those univs where I've seen a number of my classmates get hired with low mins or even straight out of school.
It seems to me that the guys that do get these opportunities (they do seem like a lot because I know a number of them, but actually are only a small percentage of the entire school body) are in top of their class, very high GPAs, leaders in clubs, and/or working part time, etc. they obviously worked very hard not just with school but extracurriculars, flying, work, all simultaneously.
I know some of them personally, and to top if off, they're great guys. The regionals know this already, because, and this is what seems to be the deciding factor:

Internships. My school offers internships to many airlines. These are very competitive and high mins (for ex., must have a minimum 3.0 and their commercial/multi to even apply, but most competitive applicants have like 3.7 and their CFIs as well) and so only a few that apply actually get it. But completing the internship successfully guarantees an interview later on or slashed minimums. Notice I said "successfully", as internships obviously aren't an easy shortcut out.. not only did you have to work your butt off for 3years to even get the internship, you obviously have to work hard at impressing everyone at the company for the duration of a semester, or however long the intership lasts.

That's my observation. I wish I had done the same, but 1. my grades didnt cut it and 2. I downplayed the importance of internships when I was younger and stupider.

Oh yeah, as far as graduates from flight schools like ATP, they have formal agreements between them and a number of regionals that guarantee interviews at like 500 TT or whatever.

I had a friend at my previous regional who did an internship with CAL while in college. He was out of that RJ right seat after 18 months, at age 27, with 1001 turbine.

If you have an opportunity to do an internship at a MAJOR airline, do it. I wouldn't waste time doing a regional internship, spend them summer CFIing instead.

yeah but I imagine getting an internship isnt that easy

What do you do at an internship for a major or regional airline??

Whatever they want you to do! Try to impress them! If you are a pilot-type, you will usually work in flight-operations doing staff-type work for the chief pilots, but they will probably also get you jumpseat and/or simulator rides.

I imagine it's a whole hell of a lot easier than getting a major airline interview at a company where you don't know anyone...

Yup, you're right.. but the smart ones do BOTH. There are plenty that have done TWO internships during college, gotten all their ratings including CFI even if they have no plans to use it (because some regionals state that they prefer applicants with CFIs and so it makes them competitive), AND graduated on time. That way, they have a regional interview lined up with slashed mins after graduation.. and when they reach whatever number of right seat time in a regional, they can apply to the major where they interned. Like you said, CAL for example counts SIC time too, instead of requiring 1000 PIC turbine or whatever. (I don't know the exact specifics of that certain program, but it's something like that.)

What you do in a major internship depends on the department where you're assigned.. I've heard of some people getting ground instruction, sim time, and I think all or most of those internships have some kind of jumpseating allowance.

I always see the interns here at XJT stuffing things into our mailboxes or shuttling papers around the training center:D I do know that they get plenty of time to mess around in (and break) the sims as well as travel priveleges.