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Old 6th Jan 2010, 11:42
  #15 (permalink)  
potkettleblack
 
Join Date: Nov 2005
Location: UK
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The aim of the game is to get a job is it not? There are no jobs and will not be in the near future. There is no point wasting your money on training at the moment. No matter how good a cadet you turn out to be at Jerez it will be in vain and you will be servicing an ever increasing debt and will then have to make the difficult choice as to whether to stay current or let your ratings lapse thereby invariably incurring significant retraining costs when the time comes.

If you agree with my first point regarding getting a job as being the overriding factor then you need to consider whether your proposed school is really where you want to be. People joining my outfit found it tough getting a recommendation out of the school irrespective of the fact that they had first time passes and better than average reports from the instructors. Oxford on the other hand was more than happy to send a bunch of CV's off willy nilly. They still do this to the day as far as I am aware with the pay to fly schemes and also Ryanair.

Consequently when the boom was at its peak about 3 or 4 years ago we took on loads of Oxford people but not many FTE. I don't think there would be any difference in the calibre between the two schools nor the others that joined from a modular background either. We all passed the same entrance tests and so on. Fortunately for my fellow colleagues they went outside of the normal referral routes, got their CV onto the right desk, got interview, selected and are now in the RHS.

Now I realise there is a significant difference in price between these two schools which may be influencing your decision. I wouldn't rule out modular in any case as it will cost you a hell of a lot less and give you the same bits of paper but its moot point as I wouldn't be embarking on any professional training at the moment. Instead do your PPL and build some hours. Consider buying a share in something small and cheap and keep yourself current. Even better if you can get into a "no capital" group. Take your holidays somewhere like the US and do some flying which will add to your experience and fill up your logbook.
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