If this place is offering low-ball pay, won't help with relocation costs, & makes you interview on your own dime, I would take those as red flags of a penny pinching operation. Unless you're extremely unhappy in your current situation it doesn't sound too appealing to me. Just my 2 cents. Good luck one way or the other.

I know it will cost you money to go do the interview, but I would say do it anyways. It will only give you more options. The worst case is they pick somebody else, but you'll still have your option to accept or decline the offer if they give it to you.

You might get a better or worse impression of the operations when you do interview, so take every opportunity to ask those questions that matter to you the most. If they are a good flight department they won't feel uncomfortable with you asking questions. They want a candidate that is a good match, just like you are seeing if their operations are a match for you. If you don't feel comfortable working for them, then just say thank you but no.

Plus it will expose you to a corporate interview since you don’t have that experience. No matter which path you take, good luck.

Thanks again for everyone taking the time out of their day to respond to my questions... Im gonna chew on it, but in the end I really dont think I would take this job. Ive been furloughed 3 times and its been a rough ride to say the least. The job is in the Northeast... not exactly a great place to be making 35K... again guys thanks for the insight.

The pro pilot survey isn't all that accurate. People will submit their salary way higher than what it really is, just to bring the survey back to their bosses asking for a raise because others in the same position are making x amount more. When in reality that may not be the case.

It's unfortunate that they are already lumping your training (the type) in with your compensation. That's not a good sign of things to come, trust me.

I worked in a corporate flight department for a couple of years, flying similar equipment. I went in starting at low pay, with the promise of higher pay among other things. None really materialized, and eventually I left due to lack of career progression (and the crappy pay). I work at a regional airline now, if that tells you something. Just because it's "corporate", doesn't mean it's good. In fact, most of the time it's not.

As far as the interview, I've had a couple of corporate interviews and they are very different from airline style technical interviews. As you rightfully guessed, they want to see if you're going to be tolerable on a week (or longer) trip with no crew swaps. You might also get some scenario questions... For example, what would you do if flying into Aspen and noticed a 10 knot tailwind that wasn't on the ATIS, etc. There might be some tech, but it will most likely be a piece of cake compared to an airline interview.

+1. Very hit and miss with corporate.

+1

A 500-series Part 91 Citation SIC job often pays $45k or more in the midwest...and one should expect a reasonable adjustment for cost of living if its located in the northeast.

THAT SAID:

Go do the interview. If they offer you the job, then you are in a position to either decline (you're back where you are today) or negotiate for a better salary and a relocation package.

If I were to interview you for a similar position, I'd ask a few very basic technical questions to verify you know what you're supposed to know given your background. After that, it'd be "Why do you want to work for us", "What are your mid and long-term career goals", and some customer service-related "Tell me about a time" scenarios. I'd then ask you some questions to try and figure out if you'll be tolerable flying with me for the next _ number of ears, and give you an opportunity to ask me questions so you can figure out if I'll be tolerable flying with you for _ number of years.

I agree with BoilerUP... go to the interview. Who cares if you show up and are surrounded by CFI's? That will make you look better. If I interview someone who looks head and shoulders above everyone else I will come up with more money to recruit them. The more you appear confident, but not cocky, the better deal you can/will get.

I also agree it sucks to ask someone to pay for their own hotel for an interview, but that is the most it will cost you.

Chances are you won't be surrounded by CFI's. The competition is still stiff on the Corporate side of things. Most companies only want somebody typed in the airplane already. Lots of lowballing in pay is still going on. See if you can get your hands on the NBAA salary for that airplane. That might help you better if you get the chance to negotiate your salary. The pay seems low to me. Find out how many hours a year they are flying. Do they book their trips in advance or do a lot of pop-ups? Do they give you any vacation time or hard days off? A bad QOL mixed with low pay would be a job offer I would walk away from.

OP's impressions of the job are correct. The pay is too low for that part of the country. Of course, if you have nothing else ...

One good thing is that it would get you into the corporate "world". You can start networking, which can lead to bigger and better things. You're paying your dues again, basically.

Shame they want you to "pay" for the type, but when competition is tight they can get away with that.

In any case, though, do the interview - as long as the cost of getting to/from isn't too much. The experience is always useful; each successive interview is always a little easier.