1 Real Life experience valued???
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Well during my time there (which was not too far back), most of the faculty did apprciate the insights the few of us who had work experience did have. There would always be an occasional blacksheep, but mostly YES.
Student Breakup- fresh grads vs Experienced?
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Well in my year it was something 40:60. And that did add value ! Infact I think that is one of the highlights of the programme - you learn a lot from from your classmates as you do from the course itself. And I should hasten to add that you learn as much from the freshers from the univ (those latest tricks in Excel???- the snazziest way to a PP presentation....).
Age of students......
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Well in my year around 25..! But remember the intake is small. between 30-35... So the average age is not an indicative figure like the Harvard MBA (a class of 1000?)...
Older students without academic qualifications but aviation experience??
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Well most of the older students have BOTH Academic qualifications and Aviation Experience (We had for instance a lawyer as well as a
Economist!)
Teacher Student Ratio
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1 for every 3 students . There are about a dozen faculty memebers, most of them old hands. However two of the veterans have recently retired.
Graduate employability - are they really sought after by players in the industry?
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Well first do a search of the archives here....... I wish I did before I went ..... (but at that time I was a greenhorin in PPRUNE). Some very realistic views you will come accross.....
Remember that aviation esp in the management side is one of the the BIGGEST CLOSED SHOPs in any industry, esp in the non western world!
Put it this way - if you are native of UK or EU and/or has the right to live and work in Europe. (without the need of a special work permit) ..not only do you pay 1/5th of the regular course fee , but then you will have five times the chance to get employed......
Cranfield industry links - is it as good as the institution makes out?
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Well links are there alright, but sorry to say mostly it is for the faculty and the deparment's enrichment in terms of consultancies, project work etc! With the exception of a honourable few, the school's and the faculty's interest in you stops the moment you are out .... Dont expect too much assistance for placements et all... I doubt whether the department even is in in a positon to
tell any prospective employer which all students are available.........
The department badly can do with a placement cell or a careers office.....Yes there is a University Career guidance cell..but they dont know the difference between Forumla 1 vehicle skin corrosion testing specialist and a air transport flight analyst........ They have too broad a portfolio of students to handle...... To put it mildly the sort of placement assistance most of us in our batch received was next to nothing!
Guess that sums it up! Of course - it is just my experience and it may be in variance with a lot of others. But ours was a close knit batch, I am still in touch with about half a dozen guys on a regular basis and while all of us are unanimous that we had a great time at Cranfield, when the question comes to how much the course and the department helped us actually progress...... well there are a lot of hmmm's and haaaaas!
Please give some serious thought before you join the programme.. Not discouraging you by any means and I will be the first say that I enjoyed the programme as much as anyone else....but then I didnt join the programme to have a 20000 Pound holiday.....which is what it is looking like for me so far.........!!!!
Be warned of the financial implications!!!