Wikiposts
Search
The Pacific: General Aviation & Questions The place for students, instructors and charter guys in Oz, NZ and the rest of Oceania.

University Questions

Thread Tools
 
Search this Thread
 
Old 2nd Oct 2002, 12:00
  #1 (permalink)  
Thread Starter
 
Join Date: Oct 2002
Location: Ossie
Posts: 10
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
University Questions

Info and help required for a year 12 student!

At this stage I am considering UWS and UNSW as my two options, and have put them down as my first and second preferences. I just have a few questions about the courses.

UWS - Just say I enrol for the BA Aviation (Flying), and start to complete flight training at Flying School X at YSBK. At this stage I am doing flight training during the day, and attending 2 afternoons a week at the Bankstown Campus. I do this for the first year and get some subjets of the degree completed.

After this first year of flying I have all the bells and whistles (CPL, MECIR, ATPL (theory)) and now I want to go out and find a job. What happens with the second year of the degree now? Can I do this by distance education while I am working/looking for a job? And does the degree now turn into a part time degree (which was full time for the first year?)

It would be great to hear from present and particularly past students from both courses. Where are you now, and what sort of jobs have you found?

Regards,
Trump.
Trumpetter is offline  
Old 3rd Oct 2002, 03:41
  #2 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Dec 2001
Location: West Kimberley
Posts: 27
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Uni Courses

Trumpetter,

I did the UNSW course and had a great time. There are some not so interesting courses, particularly at the beggining, ie maths and physics but the later years were fun as many courses were taught by industry people who are passionate about their field. A degree will not help you a whole bunch in GA but maybe later on?? The other thing is in takes 3 yr and that time could be spent on getting your license and looking for that 1st job. I would say these courses are getting better with time (they have only been around since 1994) and adapt to what the industry wants. My opinion is that if you can put the time in now it may help later on.

I am prensently in GA, flying charter, if you would like more info please feel free to email me

cheers
batch is offline  
Old 3rd Oct 2002, 06:14
  #3 (permalink)  
U2
 
Join Date: Oct 1999
Location: OZ
Posts: 126
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
In my opinion you should think about getting you licences ASAP. A academic course will not get you a job in aviation, you need to have your licences first follow by experience. Aviation being a highly regulated industry requires the you acheive minimum standards before academia.
A degree will only help you after you have the important stuff.

However, if you do not have the cash to pay for your licence then maybe you would be better off completing the degree and saving money for your licence over the 3/4 years course duration. Some degrees integrate flying and study together so that you don't have to folk out 30 grand in one year; but over the duration of the course.

U2
U2 is offline  
Old 3rd Oct 2002, 08:22
  #4 (permalink)  
Moderator
 
Join Date: Apr 2001
Location: various places .....
Posts: 7,187
Received 97 Likes on 65 Posts
While not wishing, in any way, to detract from the various aviation-related courses which are available, you might consider the following matters ....

(a) why do you want to do a degree ?

(b) if it is to provide a more detailed level of study relevant to the flying (compared to doing the minimum to scrape through the exams), fine. In the longer term, if you go into flying and advance to management, this may be to your advantage in some ways.

(c) if it is to provide a meal ticket, then consider that the general market for such degrees is very limited.

(d) the usefulness of a meal ticket, secondary to and largely independent of flying, is a VERY significant bonus. Consider that one's medical certification is very fragile or, as the 1989 debacle showed, there are more than a few ways to end up out of a flying job.

(e) if you are proposing to spend three years doing a degree and the licence simultaneously (at huge cost), then consider whether you might be better off doing a four year related vocational degree and the flying in your spare time, again simultaneously. The sorts of degrees which might be considered (all of which would be well thought of by your potential flying employer and all of which can be converted into an alternative meal ticket) include engineering (aeronautical, mechanical, electronic, mechatronic majors), economics, commerce, law, science (maths, physics, computer science etc majors).

Have you thought about ADFA and a few years as a GD pilot in the RAAF ? Unfortunately, the pilots tend to be limited in what degree courses they do, but the end ticket is still well regarded.

I often wonder whether there is a downside to the aviation specific degree ... certainly it is quite limited in its application.

Your call, of course, but do give it some thought outside the square before you commit to one thing or another .....

Last edited by john_tullamarine; 3rd Oct 2002 at 08:52.
john_tullamarine is offline  
Old 3rd Oct 2002, 09:34
  #5 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Mar 2001
Location: Brisbane
Posts: 1,219
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
U2,
A academic course
You mean "An academic course". You learn that at uni

j/j

Seriously though:

How about doing a degree in something else as a back up (e.g. Com. Sci etc). That way, if your flying an NDB for the 6th time today, air traffic require you to do an NDB for landing and you decide to scratch your eyes out with a pair of scissors instead - you have a career to fall back on?


(Go UNSW!!)
Pass-A-Frozo is offline  
Old 3rd Oct 2002, 14:59
  #6 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Nov 2001
Location: NY
Posts: 277
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Hey pal,
Good thing you're looking for advice. First of all don't try to mix flying and aviation unless they are HIGHLY related to your flying like Uni SA has. You'll end up doing what I did and one or the other will suffer meaning 1/ you fail uni exams or 2/ you end up repeating flights because the time between is staggered. If I were you I'd do all 3 years of Uni and not even touch flying until the final year and do it all in one hit as you then propose. And I wouldn't try to do too much by correspondence. The number of guys out there doing grade 12 maths/physics to get into Q are a dime a dozen and the ones I know find it hard to even get that done let alone an entire years worth of work.
Secondly degrees are about as useful a hoola dancing in GA, but in parts of the world 80% of airline pilots have degrees. So it should pay off in the end. This has nothing to do with the intelligence or skill of a pilot, but rather with the fact that the more degrees in a company the higher the stocks are valued.
Good luck
druglord is offline  
Old 3rd Oct 2002, 16:43
  #7 (permalink)  
EngineOut
Guest
 
Posts: n/a
While I may be a little bit biased, I cannot recommend the UNSW course highly enough. You do the flying in concentrated segments (so you don't forget it)and enough background to understand the other side of the business (making money-or at least trying to break even!) plus a whole lot of other stuff. I was lucky enough to gain a great first job, and would not have done so without the degree. Keep your mind open and gain experience in aviation in other than flying while you are studying-it could prove to be invaluble (as I found) and never, NEVER sit backside and watch the industry go by- get into it (even cleaning the toilets on aeroplanes). It is hard to keep motivated in these crappy jobs, but if you do it well and show initiative, you'll never know the contacts you could havel made (through the bosses) and associated jobs you will make.

Believe me it works. As always, you will never make it without a good bit of hard work. It will pay off.

Good Luck!!!
 
Old 4th Oct 2002, 06:57
  #8 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Oct 2001
Location: australia
Posts: 80
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Well, let me share my experiences with you.

I have worked about 35 hrs a week since I was 15. I'm now 19 and I've made a few mistakes with my money and time along the way.

I started flying at the start of yr 12 (2000). I think a few flying lessons was a good idea, just to see if you feel comfortable in that kind of environment, and for me, it was a taste of the light that was waiting for me at the end if the tunnel. But that is where I should have stopped. Instead, I flew once a fortnight (as that was all the spare time that I had).

Now i'm second year uni (full time), I still work about 35 hrs a week (but now with more responsibility = harder), I'm a PPL, ME rating, CPL theory (for which I studied over mid semester break) and now I've started my ATPLs. It's not easy knowing that all my friends are out drinking themselves silly, when I'm either working or studing. I only got about 6 - 7 hrs sleep on average every night. I have no spare time. I had to give up playing sport because I had no time and I couldn't afford the fees. My social life is almost none existant (3 - 4 times a year at best), and when I do go out, I'm bad company because I'm so run down. All that keeps me going is knowing that it is only another year and a half to go.

My advice is this:
Don't do what I've done. I'm come too far to stop now, and I will get everything, but I don't have a life. Trust me, uni life is great, when you have the time + money to go down to the local for a few drinks with those hot girls from your HRM class inbetween lectures. And uni parties man, they kick arse!!

Get a class 1 medical, get a job, save enough every week to give you about $35 - $40 K at the end of your degree that you can spend on your flying (you will spend more than that, but it is plenty to get started). This should mean that you will have enough left over to go out and have fun with while you are at uni. I think it is wise to have a couple of joy flights every now and then though, just to keep you focused on your goal.

As for what degree to do.... well that is something that you must decide for yourself. But I wouldn't rule out a degree outside aviation. It will make you a more rounded person, (I've met a few aviation students that can only have a conversation with you if the topic is aviation related), and it will also give you a backup plan, should the industry turn to **** for a few years. A few courses to consider might be:

Teaching (ease of employment in any state - esp. for males. good pay and it is the bees knees of courses for the chicks)

Business courses, as they are very flexible with what subjects you can study, and they aren't that difficult) NB: the girls are the hottest in the Human resourses and marketing majors for these types of degrees. If you need to get a grad dip ed, you can go back to uni for another year, and then be a teacher.

Also get a subscription to 'Australian Flying" or some other flying magazine. This will mean that you keep in touch with the industry, which will be benificial in the future.

Anyway good luck with whatever you decide, but keep in mind what advice has been given to you on this thread.

rgds fnb
franksnbeans is offline  
Old 5th Oct 2002, 07:51
  #9 (permalink)  
Thread Starter
 
Join Date: Oct 2002
Location: Ossie
Posts: 10
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Thanks guys for the replies, very helpful indeed.

It really does make me think whether an aviation related degree initially is the most ideal scenario. My first priority is obviously to obtain my licences and head out into the GA workforce. However, will the contacts made through a university help me find that first job, more so than just heading out to a flight training school?

Druglord, it's interesting what you say about the difficulties of completing a non-aviation related degree with flight training. I hadn't really thought about that as an issue until you pointed it out. John_tullamarine, some sort of engineering degree is definitely what I was considering (if not aviation related). The caution that I have received from others has been the difficulty of re-educating oneself i.e. if I don't go to uni straight after school, I will never have the motivation to.

Franksnbeans, sounds like you're doing it tough, but I am amazed at how far you've come! Good luck with it all!

I did hear once that all roads lead to Rome...but which is the shortest? Argg to many decisions to make.

Thanks once again for the replies.

Regards,
T.
Trumpetter is offline  
Old 6th Oct 2002, 10:54
  #10 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Mar 2002
Location: Under the Equator
Posts: 605
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Trumpetter;

Forget the aviation Uni degrees.

Those who choose the Uni option are well behind the others, spend a lot more money and due to the staggered flying schedule - end up repeating sequences.

Why do it?, it doesn't give the student any extra advantage in the aviation industry.
Rich-Fine-Green is offline  
Old 7th Oct 2002, 00:55
  #11 (permalink)  
Thread Starter
 
Join Date: Oct 2002
Location: Ossie
Posts: 10
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Rich-Fine-Green, thanks for the reply. I hear what you are saying, and totally understand that the degree isn't important in G.A. But don't I have to educate myself sometime? If I, for some reason or other, can't pass my medical, then surely I need something to fall back on. Even if it's an engineering/business/whatever degree.

hmmm...
Trumpetter is offline  
Old 7th Oct 2002, 01:16
  #12 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Sep 2002
Location: Perth, Australia
Posts: 13
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
I did pretty much what you are talking about in relation to doing a degree and learning to fly but I did a full year and a half of my degree before starting lessons. Flying is addictive and once you start you don't want to stop! So I made sure I was half way through the degree before starting. I still finished my CPL and CIR before I finshed the degree.

The other bit of advice I would give is to fly during holidays and when you are studying-study! Trying to mix both is too hard and will only detract from your performance in both.

One more thing, I found that the airlines are the ones who seem to appreciate degrees but most GA companies seem to frown slightly because it indicates you are totally focused on airlines. Although this is probably true, you need to have everything pointing the right way when trying to get that first job. For that reason I now leave my uni degree off applications to GA companies.
mikef is offline  
Old 7th Oct 2002, 13:03
  #13 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Mar 2002
Location: Under the Equator
Posts: 605
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Trumpetter;

After some time in the industry now, I still don't have any letters behind my name 'just in case'.

If I lost my medical or for some other reason, became unemployable within the industry as a driver, I guess my options may be limited.

There are of course, a number of options within the aviation industry for positions other than the left seat of an airplane. No need to list as it may hijack this subject!.

Also, I believe that a CPL, M/E IFR, FIR & ATPL at certian organisations may be used as credit towards tertiary qualifications.

I recall sometime ago, a Uni in NSW was offering huge credit towards an Aviation Management degree (masters?). Possibly others may be able to add to this and fill in this gap.

Anyway, if you lost your medical etc, and did not have any backup (like me ), you may be able to at least gain some credit for having gone to the right organisation.

Ask questions at your local flight schools. and if I'm wrong, I'm sure there will be someone that will correct me.
Rich-Fine-Green is offline  
Old 8th Oct 2002, 01:28
  #14 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Jun 2001
Location: Not at work
Posts: 1,573
Received 88 Likes on 34 Posts
G'day Trumpetter,

Being from the Sydney area originally, I also faced the choice between UNSW, UWS and Uni of Newcastle.

I went the UNSW avenue, for a couple of reasons...

(1) The flying is conducted by the University itself, under it's own AOC, with it's own instructors and using the University's own aircraft for the majority of the time (other aircraft are x-hired when things get busy).

(2) The flying is structured in a way that you progress nicely in line with your theory knowledge and that there is a nice balance between University studies and flying training, rather than big chunks of each other. The longest you will go without flying is around 9 months but this may have changed in recent times. As for repeating sequences, it wasn't an issue for the majority of my course, and is probably fair to say that these people would have had to repeat stuff regardless of how staggered their flying schedule was.

(3) It is the only one of the "Big Eight" (or is it nine?) traditional universities in Australia which runs an aviation course. Of the 3 uni's I mentioned, there's no denying UNSW has the best all-round reputation (or maybe I'm just biased? ).


The degree will not help you get a job in GA - everyone will tell you that and it's true. I even got told I wasn't a candidate for one job because I HAD a uni degree. Go figure.

The reason I did one was because I wanted the satisfaction of completing the degree and being able to show employers that I was capable of learning and committing myself to something for an extended period.

It is true that in the US, 90 odd % of pilots have degrees of some sort. If we follow that trend, like we do in most things aviation, then perhaps a degree is a good thing to have under one's arm.

I don't regret doing one for a second, loved (almost) every minute of it and I'm enjoying the GA experience now. Drop me an email if you have any other questions.

Cheers,
TL
Transition Layer is offline  
Old 8th Oct 2002, 02:21
  #15 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Australia
Posts: 93
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
I chose UWS to do B. Av (Flying). As you probably know, at UWS you can gain 120 of the 240 credit points required for award of the degree through flying training.

To answer your question, yes you can complete the second and third years of the degree by distance education and this is what a lot of people do. The fact is, however, that it will take you at least 18 months to get your CPL/MECIR and complete the additional training required by the uni (i.e. LOFT, ATPL theory and a few other small courses). By that stage, you are really only left with one year of the degree to complete by distance ed.

With UWS you are given the option of training with either CAS or Aerospace Aviation at Bankstown. Both are good flying schools, but the major difference between them is that the theory training at CAS leaves Aerospace in its dust. I chose CAS and couldn't be happier.

One of the other posters said he chose UNSW over UWS because the flying training was conducted under the university's own AOC. I don't really see that as an advantage in itself. The UNSW school is very good - I can't knock it, but I don't see how it is better than one of the well established flying schools simply because it's owned by a university.

Additionally, the flying training at UNSW is broken into chunks in order to fit around the academic timetable, and the result is that you spread the flying training over quite a long period of time. By doing a structured course with a flying school such as CAS with UWS, you spend 18 months focussing on flying and you are at the airport 5 or 6 days a week. In my experience, this is a much better option than having lengthy delays between stages of your training. Moreover, it means you can get your CPL nice and early and try to get a job whilst still completing your degree.

As for the academic side of things, the degrees at UNSW and UWS are a bit different in some ways. UNSW tends to have more of an engineering focus where UWS is purely human factors and management. In many ways this is probably a more important factor to base your decision on than the flying training, because at the end of the 3 years you will have a stock standard CPL/CIR etc no matter which uni you go to, if any, but your academic studies will be much different.
GearOff is offline  

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are Off
Pingbacks are Off
Refbacks are Off



Contact Us - Archive - Advertising - Cookie Policy - Privacy Statement - Terms of Service

Copyright © 2024 MH Sub I, LLC dba Internet Brands. All rights reserved. Use of this site indicates your consent to the Terms of Use.