DAR Pilot
I got it - I think you should look abroad, away from your country, and that would make it easier for you to understand other people point of view.
So basically in my country it's exactly the opposite of what you have been developping in your post :
Prospective test pilots are required to have demonstrated a high level of proficiency in an aviation field, in order to be able to expand the scope of their knowledge and flying experience.
They shouldn't be too young in the business (for obvious reasons) but also not too old (to accept criticsm during TP school, as a starter)
They have to be university graduates, with high level diplomas in mathematics or physical engineering (so very theoretical, not technicians) Call those diplomas Masters, PhD, graduate engineers, or whatever, they have specific names in my country, and that's what matters.
Then candidates will pass a theoretical exam of quite a high level, followed by a flight in a type of aircraft exactly the opposite of the one on which they have experience (fighters pilots after minimum briefing will fly a transport type they will discover in the morning, and transport pilots will be seated in a fast jet cockpit..)
So candidates are not "chosen" ....
What we try to avoid is to have a XXX pilot with apparent good technical knowledge, to teach him to be a test pilot of the same XXX ! (as I know it's what happens in some places)
Therefore it's not surprise in this country that all TP are ex-fighter pilots, with the required academic background (which does exclude 2/3 of the potential candidates from this origin in my country) AF officers have to be graduate engineers, which is not the case in many other countries, thus making here the selection process for TP a little bit more ..."prepared"
Therefore TP of famous Airbus types are ex-fighter pilots, apart from a couple of exceptions from time to time (you are welcome to check)
Candidates without the required background will be channeled through the other paths of flight test (which will not prevent some, being FTE, to portray themselves (or be portrayed ?) as TP in some publications (probably because they fly general aviation on week-ends)
Also excluded for ever are airline pilots, because definitely they lack the minimum academic background - not even talking of airline hours being adequate for future flight test experience ...
So that's the way it is (and in this country our industry is just making fighters, airliners, helicopters, business jets, engines, avionics, missiles, radars..) so there might be some justification in being this way.
As I have been stating previously, each country can do it its own way !
Even there used to be at Bombardier a national from the above-mentioned country, who was boasting himself for being a TP without anything as written above - so opportunities can even exist, moving from one country to another.
Gengis, you are not the only one "with a better university education than most" ..... !
and DAR : "Nearly all of the test pilots I know, including myself, were drawn into the role by invitation, rather than application" I say again, totally the opposite - but it's not me, it's my country process, and given the results for 70 years, they shouldn't be so wrong.