I'm not a recruiter myself, but our clients mandate the qualifications required, not the recruiters. Out of the many thousands of jobs which don't require a degree on our database, they're at the lower end of the pay scale - and on some of those wages, you'd find it hard to build up a flight training fund given living expenses etc.
Yes a degree will limit opportunities. However this lad does not want those opportunities, he wants to be a pilot. That is not a career that requires a degree.
Fair enough, but if he loses the Class 1, he needs a fall back position. The market is dire for training now, so the choice is:
- go to Uni, get a degree, be more employable, have a laugh, maybe do something you are interested in, train at a more advantageous time. If not, you have a fall back position from your degree (provided it's not something which doesn't lead to a career). If you're Scottish and go to a Scottish Uni, your debts will be far less than the southern options.
or
- try and get a job now in the current market, without a degree, and save for three years. Depending on your location/aptitude/interests/luck, you could be working in a bar for the next three years only covering your living costs, and having nothing to show for it.
or
- Train now, and throw your hat into the ring with all the other pilots on the job pile with a big loan. And keep current, and don't lose the Class 1.
It's a personal choice granted, but a degree is a sensible option while the aviation market is rubbish, unless you can line up something lucrative through a contact.