Hi, im a junior in high school and i dont have that high of a GPA around a 2.75, and i want to be an airline pilot but will I even be able to get there with such a low GPA. It seems like colleges want people with only 3.5s and higher. Also what wil colleges and airlines think of it. Its getting time to start getting ready so I'm looking for info on how to become an airline pilot with my low GPA. I am in the middle of owkring on my private now. thanks for any help/advice.

Tyler

What's GPA? :8

American thing: Grade Point Average.

A=4
B=3
C=2

So 2.75 means mostly Bs with some Cs.

OC619

Allflight57

Being from the uk and not america - i am not sure on what the American airlines want in the way of academic qualifications. I have however trained in America and had a lot of friends that have got into the airlines who were not that intelligent.

You are doing the right thing in starting your ppl. Work your way through to your instructors certificate and get about 1000hrs logged. I believe that is what most of the US airlines want. As for the academic aspect - in my opinion, as long as you can pass the theory exams and understand the topics to a satisfactory level and display that knowledge in the cockpit then I cant see a problem. That is however my opinion and the US airlines may have other ideas.

One thing i will say is that being academically intelligent doesn't neccessarily make you a good pilot!!!!

My advise is follow your dream and go for it. If you dont make the airlines, its not a problem as there are many other types of aviation work available.

Good luck:ok:

2.75? HAH hahahaaa!
I am a proud graduate of the U.S. high school system with a cumulative GPA of 1.83! Ah, wasted youth...

The American airlines do not give a damn about your high school GPA, and usually give your college transcript only a passing look. Don't be too worried about getting into a college. Provided you don't get totally trashed on the SAT/ACT, you'll be able to get into a fairly respectable college or university with your grades. One of the great things about this industry is that it's not exclusively the realm of Ivy League types, or Embry Riddle grads with 4-year aviation degrees and $80,000 worth of debt. Perform well in college, and keep up with your flying. I would recommend getting a major in your "backup" career, as a 4-year degree in Aviation Technology or whatever won't help get you a job as much as you would think. 1000 flight hours will get you a fighting chance at an interview with almost any U.S. regional airline these days, but many airlines have considerably lower minimums. I got hired at my company with less than half of that time. I also pulled honor roll grades in college, but I don't think that even helped. In the highly unlikely event that your HS GPA ever becomes a topic of discussion, just talk about how much you've learned about hard work and dedication since those days. Most employers at the regional level are looking for flying skills, personality, and a willingness to learn. By the time you're ready for the majors, you will have a work history and flight experience that will speak louder than grades ever could.

Despite whatever "advice" you've received from some smug guidance counselor, you don't have to be the valedictorian of the class of '08 to make it. You're young, probably fairly intelligent, and you already know you want to go to the airlines. Believe it or not, you're ahead of the pack. The biggest thing you need to worry about right now is finding a way to pay for college and flight instruction. Your high school GPA is in no way indicative of your professionalism, intelligence, or aptitude for flying. All that said, you are going to need to learn to study at some point. If you ever thought HS math was difficult, wait until your first newhire ground school, upgrade, or type rating.

Don't be discouraged! I slacked off as a student more than you ever even thought of doing, and I made it. Sure, I'm poor, tired, overworked, and living at the absolute bottom of the airline industry in terms of quality of life. But you know what? It still beats the Hell out of high school. Good luck!

Firstly, GPA does not correlate to intelligence.

A lot of very intelligent students are bored or "unchallenged" by course work and therefore get lazy and stop trying. Look at Einstein.

Anyway, if you're applying to an airline that requires a college degree and you don't have much of a work history, what else can they do but look at your GPA as some measure of your study habits? After all, they don't want to spend all the time and money on your training only to find out you can't study and retain information.

I'd never make a quick judgment of a person based solely on their GPA but it does happen. So I'd recommend trying to raise it in college.

If your GPA prevents you from admission into the college of your choice, you might need to compromise and attend a community college for a couple of years. Earn a higher GPA and then transfer your credits to a university.

Like I said, your GPA really doesn't say much about you as a person, but if you have a high one it will open many more doors in terms of scholarships and internships--which will help you get better jobs--and more importantly NETWORK!!!

Remember, it's not WHAT you know. It's WHO you know. Networking is critical especially when you don't have much work experience.

I highly recommend working on your GPA and getting involved in extra-curricular activities.

Good luck.

Hey guys thanks for your encouraging replies, I just woke up this morning and it hit me that I don't have much time left before I have to get ready for college and stuff and being under a 3.0 kind of freaked me out. I think the thing is, is that aviation is what is distracting me from school, I just get home from school, play flight simulator, crack open a 737 manual, sit for hours watching flight videos and stuff like that. I just hope that the colleges or airlines or whoever see that side of me. Thanks again guys.

Tyler

Suddenly my BS Flag just came into view.:suspect:

Ok Tyler, whatever.

Your first post was full of capitalization, spelling and punctuation errors. Your second post is almost perfect.

Either you're pulling a fast one or your GPA is rising as we speak!:D

Flight simulator, 737 manuals, flight videos? Sure. Whatever you say.

I hope your layovers get more exciting! Try goin' down to the bar, you might meet a study partner!
:E

regional airlines are hiring anyone with a pulse and the ability to fog a mirror.

The question, years in the future, will be whether you are willing to work in the right seat of a jet for about minimum wage, after spending about $20,000 on the multi-, instrument, commercial and instructor ratings and later finishing a very intense training syllabus at your first airline.

The regional airlines will do a larger fraction of US domestic flying, some of which is still flown by 737s and DC-9s. Many of the pilots who are already at regional airlines will find no openings at the US major airlines, because they are already doing flying, i.e. IAH-MCI, CLE-EWR, MEM-PHL, all of which was flown years ago by 100-seat narrow body mainline jets (at major airline salaries). Some majors are trying to switch to mostly trans-continental, international city pairs.

The fact that many CRJ, and ERJ pilots have no 4-year degree will make no difference, unless many years later they are somehow extremely fortunate and receive an invitation to interview at a career company (with quality leadership...not data-crunching, self-centered nerds who count the pilots as only a liability...) such as Southwest or Fedex, maybe a good foreign airline.

qUOTE............I have however trained in America and had a lot of friends that have got into the airlines who were not that intelligent.


MATE!!!!Ive got news for you....nobody said you had to be smart to be a pilot.....you really have to be an idiot(nowadays) to even think about getting into this industry...Jeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeezsus!!

ThePotato 232 was quite correct.

With Flight Recruitment secretarial staff (some have no idea what a P-3 or a C-2 is, or anything about flying) facing large piles of applications, they usually prefer a college degree, but most upper airline management types consider us all over-paid blue-collar workers.

If the "blue-collar" phrase is difficult to believe, then look at jet salaries, and
compare them to the pay back in about '95-2000 for flying between the same cities on a mainline jet. You will never again see $100/hour for a narrowbody FO seat on domestic US city-pairs, unless there is Fedex cargo in back. Companies like Mesa will keep salaries rock-bottom, whether flying the CRJ or the glittering fly-by-wire EMB-170/190. So why will the other operators be willing to pay young pilots anywhere near a major airline salary?

The more 737s and DC-9s disappear to the desert for parking or destruction, the more often a paycheck (your future paycheck) will be about a third of what we earned, and not many years ago. Many jet FOs earn little more than minimum wage. Where will the reward be, other than the ego which becomes desensitized after a while? The dollars paid for the 20% medical and dental deductibles will be going up, as the FO seat pays about minimum wage. Good luck with a young family :uhoh: .

Based upon airline corporate (culture) history, the only fairly safe career aviation path in the US is with Southwest, UPS, Fedex, or other cargo airlines. Flying as a civilian pilot for the US government, i.e. Customs, or the DEA etc might also be a good direction. Be wary about the State Department. An FO with whom I worked back in April was in Africa for a while for his previous job, paid via Evergreen. He flew interesting missions for the State Department :hmm: .

I will be glad to leave this business in a few years (if possible) at age 55.

The more 737s and DC-9s disappear to the desert for parking or destruction, the more often a paycheck (your future paycheck) will be about a third of what we earned, and not many years ago. Many jet FOs earn little more than minimum wage. Where will the reward be, other than the ego which becomes desensitized after a while? The dollars paid for the 20% medical and dental deductibles will be going up, as the FO seat pays about minimum wage. Good luck with a young family :uhoh: .


Very true, unfortunately. I certainly can't afford to start a family, not for the forseable future.