Post Secondary Education

[airway]

Here's my thoughts.


For background, I am a First Officer at Jazz, flying the RJ. I have an Aviation Diploma from Mount Royal College, and Bachelor of Science Degree. I was a flight instructor for 8 years.

While I have no doubt that my post secondary training helped me get my airline job, I agree that it is probably little help in getting that typical first job.

Many pilots in my company, that are my age, started flying right out of high school at the local flying club. They are now captains, making twice what I make, and will be for many more years before I make captain. When they were hired, there was not as much concern about Post Seconday Education, which there is now.

I was in school for 7 years while I could have been gaining hours and experience to get a seniority number the airlines. The earlier you get that number the better. Beleve me, 1 number can make all the difference.

If the airlines are your goal, you need to plan your training and employment choices (if you have any!) towards the airlines requirements.

Here are Air Canada's current requirements:




Flight Operations – Pilot

Whether a Captain, a First Officer or Relief Pilot, an Air Canada pilot's number one priority is to conduct each flight safely with due consideration to passenger comfort and on-time performance.

While the typical work month consists of approximately 80 hours of flying, pilots spend many additional hours on such ground duties as preparing flight plans, readying the aircraft for departure, and completing post-flight reports. A day's work may vary from a long-range international flight to a sequence of shorter domestic flights. Reserve duty, in which the pilot is "on call", may also be assigned.

Air Canada pilots operate out of one of the four crew bases: Montreal, Toronto, Winnipeg or Vancouver. Base preferences are awarded in seniority so pilots must be willing to relocate as assigned. Pilots typically begin their career as a First Officer on domestic aircraft or as a Relief Pilot on long-range, international flights.


Job Requirements


To fly for Air Canada, pilots must meet certain basic requirements:


1000 hours of fixed wing flying time
Completion of schooling to the university entrance level. Ability to pass the Air Canada and Transport Canada medical and visual acuity requirements for a Category 1 medical certificate.
Canadian Commercial Pilot licence, current Instrument Rating and Multi-Engine endorsement.
Canadian citizenship or landed immigrant status.
Pilot applications far exceed job vacancies, so preference is given to candidates with qualifications beyond the basic requirements. Examples of desirable additional qualifications include, but are not limited to:

Canadian Airline Transport Pilot licence
University degree or college diploma
Aviation College diploma
Military or commercial flight experience
Jet and/or glass cockpit experience
Additional language(s)
Air Canada is currently interviewing candidates who meet these requirements. If you are interested in a career as an Air Canada pilot, please submit and maintain your profile using the link at the end of this document.






This is my advice to a young person who wants to fly for a airline :

(assuming he/she had the money to complete the Private, Commmercial, and Multi-IFR ratings in 1 year)

(most of this applies to any type of fixed wing flying as well, if you are not interested in airline flying)

1. In High School, take the highest level (in order of importance) of Math, English, Physics, and French that you can. Take the university entrance stream. In my school it was called matriculation.

2. Do not start flight training until you graduate. If you do your flight training over more than one year you are wasting money in review flights. Take a discovery flight to make sure you REALLY WANT TO DO THIS, People who are not sure they REALLY WANT TO DO THIS are not going to make it. Put this flight as your first entry in your log book!

3. At least 1 month before you start training, get a cat. 1 medical. Delays with medicals delay your first solo. Start your flight training the day after you graduate from High School. Live with your parents if you can. Take a couple of days, go to all the local flying schools. Check out prices, facilities, sims, and instructors. Often there are landing fees at larger airports, and delays waiting for Take Off. A smaller airport may be more cost efficent. Make sure the school has been around for a few years. Schools come and go, and when they go, they take the money you have pre payed with them, and you will have to deal with a new instructor who may have different training methods that you will have to relearn.

4. Find a experienced full time instructor, preferably Class 1 (class 2 OK), who will likely be there for a year. Also have another one availible for back up. Stick with these 2 instructors for ALL of the flight training.

5. Treat the training like a job. At least 5 days a week, and at least 8 hours a day, and 2 flights a day. On bad weather days still go in and review, or read the Flight Training Manual, From the ground up, The AIM, The CAR'S, Canada Flight Supplement, Flight Test Guides (get the picture?) Start working on a good attitude: be a hard worker and a keener, be friendly with everyone, network, help others, ask questions, get your hair cut, dress "business casual", follow the rules, get a good nights sleep, eat well, don't drink too much, be humble, show up early, stay late.

6. A month before you finish training, get your resume out to everywhere they might be hiring low timers. When you are finished training pack up the car and visit every one of those places, and talking to as many people as you can. Don't bring your pilot friend who is also looking for a job. Get used to being rejected 99% of the time. Do not get discouraged, you will hit that 1% eventually. If you have to work on the ramp, fine, just try to get a written commitment of your spot in the training order. Ideally, right seat on a multi-turbine would be great (it happens at Perimeter), but if this isn't availible, building time is key. Get your ATPL ASAP

7. While you are looking for a job/ working, complete a Bachelors Degree (in a field you would want to work in if you couldn't fly), through distance education ASAP (yes, I know it will be hard, but not impossible). An Aviation Diploma would be a second choice. Learn French. Enter everything in your log book carefully, and get it certified regularly. Start applying at all the airlines you want to work for right away, and update every 6 months.

Good Luck! As far as I am concerned, I wouldn't want to be doing anything else!

[lilfssister]

What about Geography? Or Environmental Science?


I was under the impression that if you had a Geog. degree you can work at a FSS or something along those lines. You are still involved in Aviation...just another facet of it

A degree is not required for FSS or ATC. All the required training is provided by Navcanada.

[marley]

Hello, I am a student in grade 11, going into grade 12 in September, and the time to apply for post secondary is fast approaching. I am looking for some different views or opinions on what is the best way to get into piloting, from the perspective of a high school student with no flight training. I know that I want to go to university or college, but should I take an aviation program or do a different program and flight training on the side? There seems to be so many options out there, and I am trying to find out which one is going to work best for me.
!

Hi

I would really recommend the college or university program outside of aviation. That way, you will always have another route to follow when and if piloting doesn't pan out. You don't want to find yourself in the position that you fail out of an aviation program and have nothing to show for it after putting in a few years. Find a good, reputable flight school and you will be happy with th quality of instruction. The cheap college programs are NOT the way to go - you could end up paying dearly. Bite the bullet and put your money into quality education and flight training.

[lyncher]

I agree with marley, because i know im screwed if aviation takes another hit....... im a pilot till i die, I have no problem with that now, but after 20 or 30 yrs in the industry i bet im going to hate myself

[C-GGGQ]

i agree with almost everything airway said. The one thing is i started putting out resumes, a month before i got my commercial and if I got a call back it was to say, "good for you but we don't want to hear from you till you get the license in your hand, cause we want our employees to start two weeks from date of hire" i got this several times.

[greenboxed]

Thanks eveyone for all of the great advice! WOW there are a million and one options out there for post secondary education! I know for sure that I am going to stay away from all of those "cheap" collge programs!!! lol... Thanks so much again, and I know that everything everyone has mentioned will really come in handy!!!

Alex