lifeafteraviation,
I can't disagree with all that you are claiming here. I don't see what college grades has to do with anything. I had a lousy 2.8 GPA for my BA,and carried a 4.0 for nearly all of my Masters. How is prior performance allways a perfect determination of future performance?
I do agree that there is an apparent issue of regional standards being substantially lower than that of majors. I say apparent in that I am unable to speak directly from experience. Wouldn't this disparity between majors and regionals be largely due to training issues at the regional level. I can't count the number of pilots who claimed to have been rushed through the training at the regional level. How many do I know for sure that paid ATP or Pan Am academy to run them through the first time? Many many of them.
I do not agree at all that experience alone is what makes a better pilot. When we talk of pilots transitioning from general aviation (C150)to their first FAR 121 job(Glass, SOP etc), then it goes a bit beyond the simple amount of hours in their books. They will almost certainly require additional training on the complexity of the environment they will be entering. That is where I believe the future will almost certainly have to lie, in enhanced training at the regional level.
It is very common, and rarely discussed, that a 1600 hour fully qualified CFI has extreme difficulty passing his first FAR 121 PC. Many of these so called 250 hour wonders breeze right through it by paying ATP or Pan Am. I know a fair share that also get practice on Flight Sim. That seems to help them with the transition from C150 to CRJ.
Oh Yes, don't let me forget! Experience is everything when it comes to piloting. Lets just not forget the training issue, which is likely the issue at hart to begin with.