Which of these bachelor degrees would be best if I want to be a major airline pilot?

Question asked in the thread below.

  • B.S. in Astrophysics with 2.8 GPA

    Votes: 1 4.2%

  • B.A. in Astronomy with 3.0 GPA

    Votes: 1 4.2%

  • B.S. in Aviation Operations 3.6 GPA

    Votes: 4 16.7%

  • B.S. in Aviation Mechanics 3.4 GPA

    Votes: 3 12.5%

  • B.A. in Psychology with 3.2 GPA

    Votes: 3 12.5%

  • B.S. in Mechanical Engineering with 3.0 GPA

    Votes: 12 50.0%
  • Total voters
    24
S

seth19man

Filing Flight Plan
Joined
Dec 22, 2021
Messages
20
Display Name
Display name:
Kali
If you were employed as a hiring manager for a major airline and you had several applicants, which of these degrees would stand out to you the most?

Answer the poll question attached above^^
 
Any of the above and any of the other multitude of degrees out there. You realize airlines don’t care what field your degree is in, right?
 
RyanB said:
Any of the above and any of the other multitude of degrees out there. You realize airlines don’t care what field your degree is in, right?
Click to expand...
I know, but I’m stuck between these fields and was hoping to get advice on what would look best on a resume, because they are honestly all very intriguing to me. I just guesstimated what GPA I would graduate with based on how hard I except the courses to be.
 
seth19man said:
I know, but I’m stuck between these fields and was hoping to get advice on what would look best on a resume, because they are honestly all very intriguing to me. I just guesstimated what GPA I would graduate with based on how hard I except the courses to be.
Click to expand...
Pick whatever you’re most interested in, don’t worry about what the airlines want.
 
1,500 hours...Check
Commercial certificate or ATP...Check
Pulse...Check

Welcome to the airline world!

Honestly what the degree in or your GPA is isn't going to make a difference. Probably wouldn't even ask the GPA. Some airlines are even dropping the degree requirements so long as you can legally serve as a pilot.
 
None of them.
Get a degree that you can be successfully employed in, that hopefully you like, if something goes south with your aviation career.
My suggestion would be business, software development, or engineering. Something not picked from the liberal arts section, unless you want to teach.
 
TommyG said:
Which degree has more value if you lost your medical and could not be a pilot?
Click to expand...
Superb point. To be an airline pilot is to be tied to a career ending First Class physical every 6 mo.

Also, most of those degrees require further education to be viable wage earners, Masters at least or PhD, unless one wants to teach high school physics. In STEM, only Engineering & RN are about the only reliable living wages on a bachelors. Same for Psy. Either a PhD for clinical psychology or an MD/PhD for psychiatrist to be reliable money makers.

So, in truth, there aren’t many good fallback careers on the list.

Having said that, the fastest way to the right seat Is through. Just finish a degree while racking up FAA tickets. This pilot shortage won’t last forever.

frankly the most daunting task, given the cost of education today and the rapid rate of change in all industries, is peering into the fog, trying to see what will be viable in 4 yrs.

chasing the “hot” anything is fraught.

there was a joke in engineering school in the 80s: what do you call a petroleum engineer? “Hey, waiter.” Today, PE is the golden ticket of undergraduate degrees. So, of course, everyone is piling into PE programs. Today, the professional education glut cycle is faster & more expensive than in the 80s, particularly for the highly specialized fields.

Still, even after university, it was a six week database boot camp that set me up for life. Timing was everything.
 
rhkennerly said:
In STEM, only Engineering & RN are about the only reliable living wages on a bachelors.
Click to expand...


This is true, but be forewarned - most of those who rise to the top in these fields hold advanced degrees. The BS is the entry degree but not the terminal degree. Many people begin working with the BS but then attend grad school after hours or online.

Still, I recommend a BS in ME. You’ll be able to find work if your flying career hits a dead end. But get to work and raise that GPA a bit. 3.0 is pretty marginal if you try to get hired at a top aerospace company.
 
None of them. Go to night school for business administration. Saves a crap ton of money, you'll learn some useful things, and you can fly during the day.

I had a 2.8 average GPA for the above mentioned degree, and just got hired by a legacy.
 
Study Astronomy or Astrophysics if the topic interests you.
Turning either into a "backup career" is a different matter, though... there are not very many working astronomers (that is, researchers) in the world, and it is a highly competitive field, where you'll need a Ph.D.
That being said, a Bachelor's in Astronomy or Astrophysics could find you a job as a Planetarium Director or Telescope Operator or something of that nature, especially if you sprinkle in some engineering skills -- again, there are not very many such positions, but they do exist. Science is a small world -- astronomy particularly so. Within it, a B.S. will go farther than a B.A. There are far more "jobs out there" for engineers.

Outside of the science world, a degree in Astrophysics will make the people around you assume that you are smart (even if you're not), and that can be advantageous when looking for a job, any kind of job. ...EXCEPT at the hiring department at an airline, that is; they won't care. In which case, as you cruise along in the flight levels, you'll be glad that you spent your college years studying something that interests you!

All the best,

--an astrophysicist
 
The Aviation Mechanics Degree could be good IF you get an A & P out of it also.

That cert opens a lot of doors that folks generally don’t think of.

ie. DoD Quality Assurance overseeing a Major Aerospace Co. Projects include Shuttle, F-22 & F-35 as well as some that are so “ black” you can’t tell your boss.

Not quite changing oil.
 
I vote for aviation maintenance, but only because having an intelligent conversation with many pilots regarding the airplane can be an impossibility at times. Many just do not understand the systems. They also do not know how to write up a discrepancy with important details or how to read a MEL. I am not saying all pilots fall into this category but many do.
 
jordane93 said:
Just pick something you’re interested in and check the degree box. Don’t overthink it. Guys are getting their pick of majors/legacies. It’s a really good time to get hired.
Click to expand...
It's a good time now. But how about next month or next year? The boom-bust cycle for airline jobs seems to cycle a whole bunch faster than almost any other industry I know of. Even the O&G industry.
 
JOhnH said:
It's a good time now. But how about next month or next year? The boom-bust cycle for airline jobs seems to cycle a whole bunch faster than almost any other industry I know of. Even the O&G industry.
Click to expand...
Barring another Covid or unicorn event, the next decade should be good. Mandatory retirements are going to be through the roof. We were about due for a downturn anyway in 2020. Happens about every 10 years.
 
Any degree that will set you up for a second career is what I'd be aiming at. Something outside of aviation....when your medical is dead.
 
jordane93 said:
Barring another Covid or unicorn event, the next decade should be good. Mandatory retirements are going to be through the roof. We were about due for a downturn anyway in 2020. Happens about every 10 years.
Click to expand...
Dude. What you been doing for the last two years. Must be some good stuff
 
lol covid wasn't the downturn. covid was the 10 rocket-assisted steps Wyle Coyote always took before falling down the canyon. Y'all about to find out what the downturn actually looks like.

Good news is, FED is finally coming in and turning up the GTFO lights at the club. Last call y'all. I've never been so giddy to see mortage rates at 4.6% (and rising) in my life lol. Party's over FOMOs.
 
hindsight2020 said:
lol covid wasn't the downturn. covid was the 10 rocket-assisted steps Wyle Coyote always took before falling down the canyon. Y'all about to find out what the downturn actually looks like.

Good news is, FED is finally coming in and turning up the GTFO lights at the club. Last call y'all. I've never been so giddy to see mortage rates at 4.6% (and rising) in my life lol. Party's over FOMOs.
Click to expand...
What is a FOMO?
 
Tarheelpilot said:
I’m the context of your post I don’t understand what you are saying.
Click to expand...

I'm arguing a direct correlation between cheap lending and FOMO behavior, which itself drives inflation, tragedy of the commons et al.
 
The legacy I am going to work for is going to have 6500 retirements in the next 10 years. That is 50% of the current pilot roster. They are still trying to hire enough people to replace the people that took the early retirements in 2020. I won't say there won't be any furloughs in that time, but if there are, I expect them to be limited in number, and for not very long. I could be wrong, but the data right now says it is a good time to be an airline pilot.

Lets revisit this thread in 10 years.....
 
Half Fast said:
This is true, but be forewarned - most of those who rise to the top in these fields hold advanced degrees. The BS is the entry degree but not the terminal degree. Many people begin working with the BS but then attend grad school after hours or online.

Still, I recommend a BS in ME. You’ll be able to find work if your flying career hits a dead end. But get to work and raise that GPA a bit. 3.0 is pretty marginal if you try to get hired at a top aerospace company.
Click to expand...
How useful is that ME bachelor’s five years after graduation if the pilot/graduate hasn’t been using it? Especially in the kind of economy that’s furloughing pilots?
 
I see an added degree! ME it is.

Just because you get a degree in ME doesn't mean you have to get a job in that field. In the computer industry, we hire a lot of people with random engineering degrees. Actually, in some ways they have an advantage over someone with a comp sci degree. Engineering teaches people how to get things done on time and on budget, more or less. The basic problem solving skills are there. Just my 2 cents.

Along those lines, suggest taking a course in accounting or two, maybe something in business, and absolutely, positively some writing classes. There needs to be a W added to STEM. Far too many technical people can't write well, and it's often the deciding factor in someone's career moving up.
 
OneCharlieTango said:
How useful is that ME bachelor’s five years after graduation if the pilot/graduate hasn’t been using it? Especially in the kind of economy that’s furloughing pilots?
Click to expand...
:yeahthat:
If a furloughed pilot with an engineering degree they haven't used for 5 to 10 years applied, my company wouldn't hire them. Especially when you know they'll be gone as soon as recall starts.

Maybe in the current labor market you could find an engineering job, but not in a downturn economy when airlines are laying off people.
 
:) I'm going to argue that it's still better than a degree in French Lit. or a B.S. Psychology. I know people with those, and pretty sure that you'd make more money as a manager of a Cracker Barrel.
 
The sooner you get hired, the more seniority you have, the less likely you are to be furloughed. Once hired, then make contingency plans. This is a job where you are not rewarded for being the smartest, hardest working, most educated. It what’s your seniority number.
 
Albany Tom said:
:) I'm going to argue that it's still better than a degree in French Lit. or a B.S. Psychology. I know people with those, and pretty sure that you'd make more money as a manager of a Cracker Barrel.
Click to expand...
You're correct on that. I just don't want anyone to get the idea a stale engineering degree is a guaranteed job, especially in a down market.
 
midwestpa24 said:
1,500 hours...Check
Commercial certificate or ATP...Check
Pulse...Check

Welcome to the airline world!

Honestly what the degree in or your GPA is isn't going to make a difference. Probably wouldn't even ask the GPA. Some airlines are even dropping the degree requirements so long as you can legally serve as a pilot.
Click to expand...

Completely agree. I've been to several regional airlines interviews, none of them asked if I have a degree.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top