How far in advance did you have to book onto a course?
I booked about 9 months in advance for the JAA course but that was before there was a waiting list. No sure what the waiting list is like now? If you have all the paperwork sorted and are flexible there always seems to be one person that drops out of a course at the last minute freeing up a place for someone else. So if you’re ready I'm sure you could get on an earlier course.
How did people find the pre course administration (visa, funding, accommodation) and how much assistance did BA offer?
I found the assistance and support services incredibly good, in fact at times a little bit too helpful. They have a lot of students to sort out so want to get you settled as quickly as possible and they do this very well if you go with the flow. However, there are some difficult people like me who want to shop around a bit!
How much did you budget for your specific course and living?
For the JAA/FAA combined course 2 years ago I budgeted a total of £45,000 but I had a very good exchange rate. When you are in country as a bare minimum you can live on $1000 a month, if you share and don't go out much: $200 food, $400acc, $200bills, $100car insurance and gas, $100 misc. If you want to enjoy your weekends and see some of America which should be part of the experience then add more.
On completion of the course what employment opportunities were available and what problems were encountered finding that first break?
If your determined, flexible, resourceful and don't piss anyone off, the first break and job should come. Just start looking early and don’t bank on getting a job at the academy. It is challenging given the current climate however I managed just as things were getting bad and came away with 800 hours and an excellent experience. It is the second break in Europe which is proving challenging! Still no work and back doing a job I was doing as a teenager for 1/3 the salary that I was getting before I headed off to the US. But I'm not giving up!!!