College help? Advice??/?

Question

http://science.howstuffworks.com/pilot3.htm

"n the civilian career path, you can attend a college that offers a two- or four-year degree (some universities even offer advanced degrees in aviation) along with flight training toward various pilot certificates. Several universities in the United States and Canada offer courses along with flight training so that you graduate with a bachelor's or associate's degree in aviation along with a commercial pilot certificate and multi-engine and instrument ratings"

What schools offer that? Links would be great and are they $$ and hard to get into?

Answer 1

I prefer the 2 year route because you finish all of your aviation classes sooner and you have the potential to instruct while finishing your bachelors degree somewhere else. I go to TSTC in Waco Texas and I really like it. There is a nearby 4 year school with an aviation degree  that allows you to transfer all of your classes over to their bachelors degree program

http://www.waco.tstc.edu/apt/index.php

http://www.waco.tstc.edu/apt/cost.php

Answer 2

1) If you are seeking an airline career, having no college will reduce your chances of getting hired by about 75%. Only having a 2 year degree will reduce it by about 50%. Get a BS degree or higher and you will be on a par with most other applicants. Otherwise, you will need 2-3 times more flying hours to be competetive, which will take many more years to accumulate. FACT.

2) For the most part, the airlines do not care whether you have a degree in aviation or a degree in microbiology, or any other field. The majority of airline companies screen applications using a computer scoring system that only looks at the number of years of college you have and what level of degree you received. There is no scoring awarded for what field of study you majored in. During my career, I have known a lot more pilots that had degrees in something other than aviation than those who did, and they became airline pilots with no greater difficulty. FACT.

3) From personal experience I can truthfully say that unless you get into aviation management instead of being a line pilot, an "Aeronautical Science" or "Professional Aeronautics" or similar degree is a pretty useless piece of paper if you ever have to seek employment outside of being a pilot. I highly recommend that you get a degree that can employ you if a flying career doesn't go well for you or doesn't pan out at all. There are a lot of unforseeable reasons that might happen. In 23 years of professional flying, with all the economic ups and downs in the industry, I have spent over 6 years (25%) either furloughed or permenantly laid off when I couldn't get a flying job. A more useful degree than "Aeronautical Science" could have prevented me from having to take low-paying menial jobs in order to make ends meet in those lean years. If nothing else, learn a useful trade that can support you if necessary. An A&P license and a degree in aviation maintenance technology is something you might consider as well as learning to fly. There is a huge shortage of qualified aircraft mechanics.

4) Most aviation colleges are not hard to get into. If you are a C or better student and have the money, that is pretty much all that is required. A top rated school like Embry-Riddle now costs about $150,000 for 4 years of tuition plus room and board, and an additional $50,000 or so for flight training.

5) Heres a useful link to colleges with aviation programs: http://www.bestaviation.net/college/