Bingo. Upgrade time and growth/movement had better be an important consideration. I didn't even apply to comair in 2003 when I was shopping for regionals because I was concerned about getting stuck as an FO for a long time.

Spending 10 years as an FO at a "good" QOL regional < 1 year as FO at a somewhat jankier place and a couple years as captain before moving on to a career carrier.

What does this mean "U wot M8?"
English please! :)

No, Mesa, No Republic, No Silver, No XJT, No SKW, No Envoy, No Gojets, No TSA, No...No No No any regional! Where does one start then?

The only pitfall there is upgrades can be very hard to predict. Most "quick" upgrades affect those on property already. Guys trying to hop on for the upgrade run the risk of getting stuck as a FO at a garbage regional for an extended period of time.

This may not really apply anymore considering the regional model is going to change drastically in the next few years, but it's something to think about.

Compass? ;)

I guess Great Lakes hasn't been mentioned yet either...

In the last 5 years what majors have been hiring people who have only spent a couple of years at the regionals? That used to be true but it just isn't true anymore. Now that the majors are hiring it won't matter if someone hired in 2005 upgraded in a year, or was hired in 2005 and took until 2013 to upgrade. Both of those pilots are still stuck at the regionals and both of those pilots have the PIC time.

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Great Lakes, no I do not want to make the great mistake! :)
Compass? Would be great but I am not qualified for them.
I talked to the recruiters at a job fair, they pretty much said :"great education, but you have no prior 121 or 135 experience. Go get a few hundred hours on a King Air and come back". I thanked them and left almost embarassed for even trying to talk to them.

Compass told you that?

Yes, I am very serious. That is exactly what one of the recruiters said.
Looks like they don't want 1500 h guys, they want people with prior 121/135 to fly their shiney 175s for peanuts.
I don't even remember if I left my resume or taken it back with the embarrassment!

Many thanks for all the participation! There is a lot of good information coming out and I am learning a lot. Let's keep it up!

The most recurring themes involve commuting and upgrades. Shortest commute implies less stress and better rest. We all know (should know) the irrefutable importance of that. The upgrade subject remains a crap shoot. I have come to understand and believe that stated upgrade time is based on the current moment and could change one way or the other in a matter of months. Ref what pete2800 stated about the upgrade time at his company changing 3 years in 4 months, that's a significant change and I don't think he meant 3 years -less-. Ref also Bzzt stating that quick upgrade time applying mostly to those already on property; a very profound point. I wish it could be better projected as I do agree with 80KtsClamp about being at a lesser regional and becoming CA quicker vs a greater regional and remaining an FO longer. To me, CA pay anywhere would more than meet my current and near future needs and would be worth -nearly- any hardship (emphasis on nearly lol).

So far I've gotten offers from Mesa, TSA, AirWis, XJT, and RAH. I live in the southeast, so I'm leaning towards either XJT or TSA. XJT due to company size, decent pay and best commute, TSA due to upgrade time, decent commute, and relatively decent pay if the upgrade dosen't come as quick as stated. Mesa's upgrade sounds good too, but they seem to have a rocky reputation and their indecent pay speaks for itself. I held off on applying for Envoy, PSA and a few others so as to save some for later rather than rejecting possible interview invitations. I think it's possible that may not go over well if one decides to try back later. Any good info on these companies is more than welcome and will be very useful.