High school diploma.

[ops spec 69]

Hey guys,
Did anyone get hired with only a high school diploma?
Is it worth waiting or should I go get a degree? What would you recommend?
Thanks so much!

Cheers ,

69'

[Johnny#5]

Well you spelled 'reccommend' right so you can't be that dumb....I'd say your probably hirable.

[ops spec 69]

Well you spelled 'reccommend' right so you can't be that dumb....I'd say your probably hirable.

Spell check

[DeHavguy]

69'
Hi guy! The greatest investment to make is to invest in yourself. A degree is a door opener, but more importantly it is an investment in yourself regardless of what door(s) it opens. I am thankful for the education I have. I have decided to go to graduate school now, and I am happy that I made this decision. Invest in yourself and go back to school. Find a subject or area of study that interests you and get busy, you will be surpirsed how good it feels to obtain and education and to keep your mind busy.
good luck,
Dehav

[ops spec 69]

Thanks for the feedback DeHav
Cheers

[land3]

Hey guys,
Did anyone get hired with only a high school diploma?

69'

Well.....as a fact of matter, there is presently a very very senior pilot flying for AC who was hired at the time with only grade ten education.

Of course this was a long time ago, somewhere back in 1973 or so, and it was a convoluted situation where his application was processed by mistake! I don't know whether he ever did finish high school.

The story came from a pretty good scource...a fellow home room classmate of his who eventually became a flight attendant.....she swears it's true.

This will never happen again...get your degree!

[Rockie]

Is it worth waiting or should I go get a degree? What would you recommend?

Don't just get a degree. Get a useful degree in case the flying doesn't work out or you end up changing your mind about a career choice sometime in the future.

[yycflyguy]

Is it worth waiting or should I go get a degree? What would you recommend?

Don't just get a degree. Get a useful degree in case the flying doesn't work out or you end up changing your mind about a career choice sometime in the future.

Like labour law.

[AEROBAT]

Hey guys,
Did anyone get hired with only a high school diploma?

69'

Well.....as a fact of matter, there is presently a very very senior pilot flying for AC who was hired at the time with only grade ten education.

Of course this was a long time ago, somewhere back in 1973 or so, and it was a convoluted situation where his application was processed by mistake! I don't know whether he ever did finish high school.

The story came from a pretty good scource...a fellow home room classmate of his who eventually became a flight attendant.....she swears it's true.

This will never happen again...get your degree!

It wasn't by "mistake" and he never did finish high school. Oh... the horror! He was hired for his ability. If it is the same guy he was flying Hercs when he was 20.

And he started with PWA out of YXD.

[golfcharlie232]

A Degree will certainly help you but not necessarily the way you think it would.
It's not just a piece of paper or another line on your CV, depending on what area you specialize in you will get a lot of life experience as well.
Who knows, if you go for an aviation degree, you could get to meet the right people, those who'll help you at some point.

I know a few people who got hired (on both sides of the Atlantic) by major airlines without a Degree so it can be feasable. You can get a great amount of life experience outside college, for sure.
But given the choice and if you can afford it, what would retain you from getting a degree?
It eases things if they don't go so well when you complete the pilot training, see it as an opportunity for a decent fall back job. And some airlines (I don't know about Air Canada, to be honest) might ask for it.

Then again, it's up to you, your motivations and what you can afford to do.

Good luck

[loopa]

It's all a numbers Game 69. How many points can you score on the matrix before you get a phone call. I personally know of several CMA pilot's who have recently moved, all of which simply had a high school diploma. Hour ranges were 3 to 4000 with about 2000 hrs in a B1900. I'm on an A/C forum so I have to keep my opinions to myself, but try to venture your career goals towards a direction where a company values your interpersonal, leadership, management, and piloting assets over an HR process to weed out resume's as the case is with a degree. I agree with certain aspects of the degree, such as it shows A/C that you have "the ability to study" or show "commitment." But on the flip side, who is to say that you didn't show up to class hung over every day and graduated with the lowest passing GPA, and that it took you 8 years to finish because you dropped in and out of university so many times? I personally find that working for companies that A/C is aware of and loves to hire from, such as CMA, shows A/C the same level of commitment (due to a training bond, low pay, etc), shows that you have the ability to study because you did pass several PPC's right? And it must mean that you're a fun guy to work with because if we have several CMA guys / ground school and are happy with their personality and position in the company, we will continue hiring from the same tree branch.

And after speaking with some guys up in close with management, it really seems that the HR process to weed out people with a Degree can be replaced with experience on EFIS, being type rated, working for a company where some form of commitment was required, being married (as it shows you won't jump ship), and that you have the right type of experience (like the 300 hour wads in Europe who fly big machines) LOL.

Here's the second part to the equation. You are always going to hear good and bad stories about working for any company. Ask yourself this question, if you get to Air Canada and quickly learn that it isn't the red carpet you'd imagine it to be, or worse yet, if you for some reason weren't hired, did you get your degree for the right reasons? Make sure you watch that, because I sure would hate to get a degree in an effort to feel that A/C now owes me a job. This industry doesn't work that way. Look at the degree as a method to further your own educational background; regardless of if it serves as an asset to A/C. I'll tell you this, the matrix board on WestJet provides a very minuscule factor for a degree. From what I have seen, Air Transat is the same. I would honestly invest time learning French to an expert level rather than spending 4 years getting a degree for A/C - at least you have a greater chance of scoring a job with an exceptional starting salary, and work with colleagues whom your wife might be jealous of - might spark things up every time you come home from pairings! LOL

Here's what I believe is the third part to the equation. This is my biased opinion, and I'm not trying to stir the pot. But given the average age range for pilot's getting employed at Air Canada, I can't help but to think if hiring a certain age category is what A/C goes towards in order to control how many people will reach the top hat when it comes to salary and pension plans? Could you imagine if every body was hired at 25 years of age, and what kind of a k-os that would produce? Fourth part of the equation as well is controlling the retirement rate at the end of these new hires careers. This isn't necessarily an Air Canada approach, but rather the approach of any large company that relies on its employees to implement the business plan.


I wish you all the best!

[ops spec 69]

Thanks guys!!

[land3]

Hey guys,
Did anyone get hired with only a high school diploma?

69'

Well.....as a fact of matter, there is presently a very very senior pilot flying for AC who was hired at the time with only grade ten education.

Of course this was a long time ago, somewhere back in 1973 or so

This will never happen again...get your degree!

It wasn't by "mistake" and he never did finish high school. Oh... the horror! He was hired for his ability. If it is the same guy he was flying Hercs when he was 20.

And he started with PWA out of YXD.

Different guy...this one wasn't flying any hercs at 20.... this story was about a misplaced application file late one Friday afternoon on a messy managers office desk.....anyway, it's just an interesting story...... the guy has had a fantastic and successful career.....kudos to him!

[ywg9]

hhmmm so by the sound of this I had better sign up at Herzing/CDI and get myself a diploma. Off I go

[Indanao]

Had a very highly qualified friend interview with A/C in 1980. Very intelligent guy, but dropped out of high school due to family problems. Anyway, he got the high school equivalency high school diploma after writing a test. A/C said, we don't recognize high school equivalency diplomas.

[ywg9]

well you bring up a interesting point. does anyone on the inside know it distance ed schools such and herzing/CDI or others are recogonized

[fruz]

well you bring up a interesting point. does anyone on the inside know it distance ed schools such and herzing/CDI or others are recogonized

I did a distant ed degree program in the states and got an interview. ...I was pfo'd..but i got an interview.

[maryolsen]

Having a diploma in college is really a great investment. If you are contented with high school diploma, then see to it that you have skills that employers are looking for. Nowadays, employers are looking for people who has college degree and skills and experience as well. You should strive better for yourself and it will take you far from what you've dreaming of. Think about it.

[loopa]

You should strive better for yourself and it will take you far from what you've dreaming of. Think about it.

You're absolutely right, I will strive to be the best aviator I can possibly be, and in the process I will go through the following processes to prove it.

A pilot's license = Privilege To Fly

Experience = Improved decision making skills (hopefully)

Type Ratings = You must be trainable

Good Interview = You must have a good personality and have done a good job summarizing the highlights of your career and aren't cautiously listening to every question in order to figure out how to respond to "come off a certain way"

Psych/Cog = Do you have personality disorders or are you stupid?

Medical = Will you have a heart attack after we spend several thousands of dollars on you?

Degree = To separate you from the other 5000 resumes - a retarded hiring practice, because it doesn't seem to incorporate the qualities you SHOULD be looking for in a pilot. That chunk of resume's you just removed could of included some of the most quality guys you could ever "wish" to have on your team because they would ACE every sector that you are evaluating; however, that notorious hiring practice of weeding out non-degree fermented pilot's just goes to show one of few things, lack of HR skills to determine a suitable candidate, lazy hiring practices, lack of respect to the several thousands of interested applicants, etc.

I don't speak from bitterness, I'm long ways away from being qualified to apply for a job at A/C, have many friends that fly the line and my degree will be done shortly - I just believe that there's something MORE to flying than knowing how the supply and demand curve works. Promoting intelligence does not equate to boozing and barely passing university because you were hung over 90% of the 4 year programme. How much of the university courses do you retain after 10 years anyway when you're pressing the buttons on the EFB spitting out your V1VRV2 numbers? With your theory, why should cab drivers with masters degrees have to put up with being spat on from some dirty drunk who needs a ride back to his university dorm? Ironic?

I personally find that knowing the sine / cosine values from grade 12 math helps me determine how much crosswind i'm dealing with, and it allows me to make operational decisions such as taking a 2 knot tail wind versus flying an extra 10 miles for the +3 knot headwind favoured runway (not that you need to be a mathematician for this). They didn't teach me this in the sound engineering degree programme? Or better yet, the basket weaving diploma?

I'd rather spend those 4 years networking and meeting people who would be influential on the hiring practices found at the company/companies I wish to make my flying a career out of, but those are simply my 2 cents - I agree that the jest of your statement is not far from the truth regarding post secondary, just not what I consider applicable for a quality pilot and specifically a national airlines hiring practices.

But then again, is it a fair hiring practice that minorities have an advantage over the white Caucasian males these days? Food for thought.

To each his own - Good night

[rjonno]

A good university degree is not just valuable insofar as the actual content you learn; Rather, it develops your ability to learn. I imagine that AC gives preference to people with degrees because by having a degree they have proven that they can pick up a big boring textbook and know it in two weeks, or analyze a complex piece of text and be able to explain it (A320 FCOM comes to mind). These are highly transferable skills and are valuable whether you're a 777 jockey or a professor.