Colorado Technical University

What are some pilots opinions and experiences when comparing career traing. FBO, univerisity, excretia.?

I am a student pilot finishing up my PPL and planning to continue my career training. I am currently at the local FBO but would like to know about others experiences at various types schools and training facility's. I am trying to decide witch direction to go next. Thanks.

Public Comments

1. If you want to fly for an airline, either a university aviation program or the military will make your application most competitive. I went to the University of North Dakota, one of the biggest names in aviation programs. I had a great time and got a lot of extra experience that will really help with an aviation career that I would not have gotten at the local FBO. There is a lot more to airline flying than just stalls and steep turns. For example, at a university, you will learn about working as a crew, airline management (including where the pilot union fits in), and jet systems. This will really help you get on with an airline and pass the training. The airline training is a rigorous 6-week course where you learn EVERYTHING about flying that airplane. If you go in without any appreciation for how difficult it is and without any background knowledge, it will be even worse and you could fail out. This will cost you your job and make any other airline reluctant to hire you. Also, airlines have flight time requirements and they will lower them for graduates of certain aviation schools. I am a little biased, but I suggest UND because it is a regular 4-year state school and it has a great flight training program. You will get the college experience because you can take courses in other subjects for fun or a second major. You will have to retake the private ground school as well as a condensed flight course and some of it will be repeat of what you already know, but you will learn some new things as well. There are other schools as well, Embry-Riddle is probably the other biggest name, but none of them combine UND's aviation program quality and a 4-year state university. At Riddle, you will be hanging out with a bunch of prop-heads. Good luck!