Fellow Aussies! need advice..

[Hawksley]

Hey guys, this is my first post, and i cant believe i didnt hear about this sit before! Its awesome. Well ive been out of school for justnover a year now working and im finally about to start doing a bachelor in aviation at Griffith in Brisbane as well as my flying training as it is now covered by hecs as long as you do the diploma in flight management.

My question is has any body done any degrees in aviation and what did they think of them? how did they cope ect...

also the two flight schools offered as a part of the degree are FTA (Flight training australia) and RQAC i beleive. Now has anybody got any opinions on these two flying schools?

One more question, i am interetsed to just hear peoples stories on how their studies treated them and how they coped, what were the harder parts of obtaining you ppl/cpl and what were the more cruisy parts?

Thanks for reading guys,

Look forward to hearing your responses!

Hawksley :):ok:

[morno]

Are you sure that your flying training is covered by HECS?? Unless someone can prove me wrong, I think you'd better read the fine print a bit more mate, ;). From what I'm led to believe, the flying training component is NOT covered by HECS.

morno

[Hawksley]

yer mate it is hey, i wasnt sure myself that is why i didnt commence my tarining last year, so i went in and booked an interview with the main administrator at griffith and as long as you do the graduate dip in flight management as well as your beachelor degree the flying costs will be covered by hecs also.

[kalavo]

yer mate it is hey, i wasnt sure myself that is why i didnt commence my tarining last year, so i went in and booked an interview with the main administrator at griffith and as long as you do the graduate dip in flight management as well as your beachelor degree the flying costs will be covered by hecs also.

Sounds very very very suspicious to me.

[Hawksley]

yer it does so im going into have a meeting with him to get the full story, i will report back with the final story haha

[abozic]

I think the flying training is only covered by hecs if you are a qantas cadet doing your degree at griffith/swinburne. So maybe the course co-ordinator is referring to this program.

If you want a second opinion maybe call the education department in your state, or a HECS helpline.

[PyroTek]

mmm.. hecs may possibly only cover the uni stuff... or you might be confusing it with the govt's 'Fee help' program.. different thing

[2ndGen]

As far as I'm aware its still not the case that HECS will cover it. I know that it has only been made available for one of the Qantas cadet courses (swinburne) and not for the courses that they are running through Griffith. I'm not saying its not true, but I haven't heard (otherwise I would have done it!) You could always go to NZ, they have a similar system there I thinK!
Good Luck!

[notorque]

and don't go thinking you can only do your training through RQAC or FTA to get the degree. Everyone seems to think this and it's just plain untrue.
The requirements are a CPL and either a MECIR OR Instructor rating + ATPL theory no matter where you do this training. Why not go to RAC and get a better product at a smaller cost.

[aviationascent]

I am doing the Bachelor of Aviation too.

Pyro-Tek, your right...

My understanding is that IF you are successful getting into the Grad. Dip. of Flight Management THEN you are able 'defer' up to 80K of the cost of flight training utilising 'FEE-HELP'. There is more to it but that is the gist.

Notorque, good call. IF one bothers to read the fine print they will see that there is approved training providers however...

"Students who do not follow this program structure must contact the Head, School of Aviation to discuss available options. Students must seek written approval from the Head, School of Aviation to vary the flight training as listed above. Students undertaking their flight training through a private provider must contact their flight training provider at the commencement of their program and/or at the commencement of their flight training program to discuss the flying syllabus, progression rules pertaining to their training as well as the financial requirements." ... taken straight from the Griffith website.

If you intend, like most I imagine, on applying for the QF cadetship, know this. Any training you have completed higher than the base CPL, QF will make you re-do under them. Therefore, applications ought be made at the appropriate time of training.

I am entering as a mature age student. I have been saving for 4-5 years now and if necessary will pay for my training myself and not rack up a loan as personally I am finally, and thankfully, in a position to choose. I think I have read somewhere that the FEE HELP loan is not worked on an accumulated interest basis, rather, a straight up 20% one off interest charge. Perhaps someone else has a more concrete understanding?

One thing I know for certain is that this course is going to be very intense. The degree itself is a 3/4 load, completed in conjunction with flight training which in itself is AUSTUDY approved and therefore full time, not to mention the Grad. Dip too.

The time is nigh for getting fired up and prepared. I know I have been.

[VH-XXX]

Irrispective of whether HECS covers it or not, HECS is still a "loan" as such and you will pay interest on it... either way, you still pay.

[Ultralights]

according to my UAC guide for 2008. Bat of Aviation and flying degrees, HECS does not cover flying costs. these are payable separately, in NSW anyway.

[aussiebob]

VH-XXX Irrispective of whether HECS covers it or not, HECS is still a "loan" as such and you will pay interest on it... either way, you still pay.
With the current indexation rate being 3.4% on your HECS/FEE-HELP loan calculated 11 months in arrears, I would like to see anybody find a better interest rate out there.

However if you do make sure they throw in nil repayments until you earn over $39,824 p.a and include in the package a 10% discount/bonus (depends how you look at it) for voluntary repayments over $500, all inclusive without a cent for setup costs or any additional on going fees.

IMO by far the best program the government has supplied for their clients. :D Check it out
http://www.goingtouni.gov.au/Main/FeesLoansAndScholarships/LoanRepayments/Default.htm

[aviationascent]

Seems that by making use of the FEE-HELP system we DO pay back 20% more as a loan fee. Hence, why I am considering using my own funds. Some say the cost of training is already very high. I believe that with 20% increase it becomes VERY overpriced. Whether it is worth it is obviously up to the individual.

Loan charges

You will not be charged an application fee for requesting a FEE-HELP loan.


You will be charged a loan fee of 20% of the amount borrowed for an undergraduate course of study.The loan fee is added to your FEE-HELP debt. The loan fee does not count towards your FEE-HELP limit.
Example: Jan received a FEE-HELP loan of $1,000 for her tuition fees for a Bachelor of Science. She is charged a loan fee of $200 (20% x $1000). Her FEE-HELP debt is $1,200 ($1000 +$200).
No loan fee applies to a FEE-HELP loan for postgraduate courses of study, bridging courses for overseas trained professionals (BOTP), enabling courses or units of study undertaken directly with Open Universities Australia (formerly OLA).


Interest charges and indexation

An interest rate is not applied to FEE-HELP loans. However, your debt is increased by the Consumer Price Index (CPI) each year to maintain its real value.


Any indexation amount does not count towards your FEE-HELP limit.



Taken from: http://www.goingtouni.gov.au/Main/FeesLoansAndScholarships/Undergraduate/FullFeesAndFEE-HELP/FEEHELPChargesAndDeductibility.htm


However, the repayment percentages here, http://www.goingtouni.gov.au/main/feesloansandscholarships/loanrepayments/compulsory-voluntary.htm are seemingly reasonable.