[Definite and inexcusable thread creep, sorry]
Uni is definitely not appropriate for everybody, despite the spin from the Labour Party which seeks to reduce the unemployment figures by convincing everybody they need Tertiary Education, and it is now damn expensive.
When I did it, there were no tuition fees and we all got (small) grants and low-interest student loans. I think I came away with £6k in debt. I'd only recommend it for born academics or those for whom it represents the only route into a profession. That's not the case for most pilots. Mind you, perhaps the ATPL theory course could be stretched into a degree course, but that's a new debate entirely!
But I still think that leaving any (expensive) decisions about your future until you are in your twenties is a sensible idea. I think I matured just as much between 18 and 24 as I had between 14 and 18. And I seem to remember that I had an awful lot of fun in my early twenties, like travelling, that I couldn't have had doing a high pressure responsible job like piloting.
So, in answer to the original question, I haven't got a job yet, but I will definitely be in my thirties when I get that first break! Er, that's assuming, of course, that this job market doesn't get even worse!!!
