First question to myself is, "Why am I typing this on Christmas Day?" - well, after all that Turkey and Lager, I'm kinda stuffed (no pun intended) - a bit of browsing the web should take my mind off things.
After reading this post (albeit slight repetition over the last few years) there does seem to be an awful lot of varying opinion over the usefulness of a degree and whether to do this course or that... or even forget the degree because why pay "2 loans instead of one?"
I'm 21. In my final year of a four-year degree. My degree is computing oriented. It has absolutely nothing to do with flying. When I was 18 I was so nieve and simple, that I took the degree on the basis that within a few months I would have been snapped up by an airline to begin a cadet pilot course. How wrong I was !
nearly 4 years later, I'm nearly graduated. I did an Industrial Placement, again, not airline related. Anyone serious about a degree these days needs to realise that EVERYONE HAS A DEGREE - what makes you stand out? SOMETHING ELSE! - Go to a rainforest for 6 months and save some trees. Visit a game park and herd some elephants - do a work placement and put your degree into practice - show that you can do it - show that you dont just turn up to lectures and hand in assignments that are predominantly plagiarised via other sources.
On the other hand, perhaps you are a "gung-ho", "all-out-for-it" , "die-hard" wannabee who WILL become a pilot at any cost. Brilliant attitude, and one that I constantly strive to achieve, but let's be realistic, there's probably several thousand of us out there and we need something that little bit extra to stand out above the rest.
If you're relatively young, 18, 19, 20 ish, like me, do a degree. Have yourself a fallback plan - the airlines will always recruit - but keep your options open. Airlines want a businessman/women flying their aircraft these days - they want someone who can show good management skills and organise the resources they have at their disposal - how does a graduate or twenty-something year old show that when they've just come out of education and are looking to start their career? They can't.
So how about organising your life and career paths in an "managed" fashion. Sort out your plans and build yourself some backup. Set some goals, meet some targets, cover yourself - and be prepared to accept mistakes and learn from them. Surely that's what being a good manager (and a pilot?) is all about?
Merry Christmas everyone.