CTC Cadet...worth it?
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CTC Cadet...worth it?
Although CTC advertise their cadet scheme as a sponsership however having read through i've discovered the method of payment and am a bit confused as to whether this is better than simply applying for the iCP or somewhere such as OAA.
The cost of the course is £63k however the cadet must pay for the foundation flight training. You must also give them a deposit of £60k, the only way many people, well me anyway, will be able to do this is by taking out a fairly substantial loan which will, of course, increase due to intrest rates. Once you get a job with an airline they reduce your salary in order to pay back CTC and also repay your loan in stages. So you are now on a cut pay check and must pay back the loan to the bank in the amount that your airline return to you, rather than your chosen amounts as well as paying off the intrest.
So surely you still end up paying for your training however you must spend time preparing and going through the selection process and even then there is a tiny chance that you will get through out of the hundreds of others that apply.
Although I understand that if you have been accepted onto this course you have a highly increased chance of being employed but is it worth spending all this time on a course which could spent raising funds towards another school such as OAA which you have a much higher chance of getting into?
Thanks,
doogle92
The cost of the course is £63k however the cadet must pay for the foundation flight training. You must also give them a deposit of £60k, the only way many people, well me anyway, will be able to do this is by taking out a fairly substantial loan which will, of course, increase due to intrest rates. Once you get a job with an airline they reduce your salary in order to pay back CTC and also repay your loan in stages. So you are now on a cut pay check and must pay back the loan to the bank in the amount that your airline return to you, rather than your chosen amounts as well as paying off the intrest.
So surely you still end up paying for your training however you must spend time preparing and going through the selection process and even then there is a tiny chance that you will get through out of the hundreds of others that apply.
Although I understand that if you have been accepted onto this course you have a highly increased chance of being employed but is it worth spending all this time on a course which could spent raising funds towards another school such as OAA which you have a much higher chance of getting into?
Thanks,
doogle92
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Cant be sure, but i belive CTC work with several Airlines such as Thomas cook, if i remember rightly? Im under the impression that your being interviewed for the job as well as the scheme, and there looking for a person to commit over a long period of time so that they do not loose money. You then get yoru bond paid back to you month after month, still in contract so that you cant leave for so many years.
So you go into your training, £60000 bond, and if you get a place you get a job also, i belive... not only this but you also have a 70% safe job because your contracted for so long (however contracting hasnt always stopped unemployment).
When i was looking at OAA there no job lined up at the end of it... which kinda worried me, your going to be looking at a bit more than £60k for OAA and you wont be getting that back with job you have gone in to via there help. They offer you an interview with an airline, nothing more...
However im lead to belive that OAA's quality of training is second to none, although there are positives and negatives floating about.
No expert and i hope all the infos correct up there
Sole
So you go into your training, £60000 bond, and if you get a place you get a job also, i belive... not only this but you also have a 70% safe job because your contracted for so long (however contracting hasnt always stopped unemployment).
When i was looking at OAA there no job lined up at the end of it... which kinda worried me, your going to be looking at a bit more than £60k for OAA and you wont be getting that back with job you have gone in to via there help. They offer you an interview with an airline, nothing more...
However im lead to belive that OAA's quality of training is second to none, although there are positives and negatives floating about.
No expert and i hope all the infos correct up there
Sole
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The key to this whole thing is finance, reputation and employment.
They ensure you can obtain the funding unsecured. The loan required for integrated courses are non-existant on the high street, this provides an alternative to securing a parents/your own property on a regular loan.
The organisation itself is highly reputed and produces high quality pilots ready for airline employment, this is supported by their employment record.
Employment rates are currently 100%. Whether this drops off over the next year is anyones guess, however you can be almost sure it will have higher employment rates than other FTOs in the UK. They are partnered with airlines meaning you have a 'foot in the door' and preferential FO placement in airlines such as EasyJet, Thomas Cook and BA.
The reason selection is difficult is they are looking for a specific type of person to turn into CTC's 'product' for the airlines. You get preferential finiancial arrangments and good job prospects, and combined with the point mentioned above means they have a huge amount of applications on a monthly basis; they can afford to be picky!
It's pricey, but in the current conditions if you ARE going to go for integrated, CTC would look like the best option. Then again, I'm biased
They ensure you can obtain the funding unsecured. The loan required for integrated courses are non-existant on the high street, this provides an alternative to securing a parents/your own property on a regular loan.
The organisation itself is highly reputed and produces high quality pilots ready for airline employment, this is supported by their employment record.
Employment rates are currently 100%. Whether this drops off over the next year is anyones guess, however you can be almost sure it will have higher employment rates than other FTOs in the UK. They are partnered with airlines meaning you have a 'foot in the door' and preferential FO placement in airlines such as EasyJet, Thomas Cook and BA.
The reason selection is difficult is they are looking for a specific type of person to turn into CTC's 'product' for the airlines. You get preferential finiancial arrangments and good job prospects, and combined with the point mentioned above means they have a huge amount of applications on a monthly basis; they can afford to be picky!
It's pricey, but in the current conditions if you ARE going to go for integrated, CTC would look like the best option. Then again, I'm biased
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Another factor to consider is how long will you be required to swim in the hold pool. Will you have the funds to finance the debt (if you took it on to fund your part of the deal) whilst you wait around for placement. If you find yourself gaining employment elsewhere and financing a type rating on your own then it could end up being a costly exercise.
A friend of mine went through the CTC scheme a couple of years ago during the so called "boom time". He treaded water for about 6 months before getting into Easy. Each month there were calls with promises of "just another few weeks" etc. In the current climate I would hate to think how long the hold pool will take to clear and where in the world you could be sent to. From what I have read you had better take an interest in Asian food and culture though
Finally you got it in one. There are no such things are sponsorships now in the UK and haven't been since 9/11. All of the current crop of schemes are pay for your training. You either end up paying through cash up front or a reduced salary.
Good luck.
A friend of mine went through the CTC scheme a couple of years ago during the so called "boom time". He treaded water for about 6 months before getting into Easy. Each month there were calls with promises of "just another few weeks" etc. In the current climate I would hate to think how long the hold pool will take to clear and where in the world you could be sent to. From what I have read you had better take an interest in Asian food and culture though
Finally you got it in one. There are no such things are sponsorships now in the UK and haven't been since 9/11. All of the current crop of schemes are pay for your training. You either end up paying through cash up front or a reduced salary.
Good luck.
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I am not sure I follow your rationale.
If for example you leave flight school with a CPL/IR and get a job with say BA or BMI or Aer Lingus (only ones off the top off my head that offer free training) then you will go onto the year 1 F/O salary scale. You will get type rated and line trained at no cost to yourself. With each additional year of service you go up the pay scales.
AFAIK Easy only take low timer CPL/IR's from CTC so there is no real comparison in year 1. However, in the past you could conceivably join Easy from another airline as a inexperienced F/O with low hours on say a turbo prop or light jet. What most junior F/O's at Easy would say is that there is a big difference in salary between a direct entry F/O and a CTC cadet who as you point out is paying back a proportion of their training costs.
There have been calculations done and posted here on pprune in the past on the salary sacrifice and the "real" cost of going down the CTC route which you can read about. Suffice to say its not a sponsorship per se no matter how you dress it up.
If for example you leave flight school with a CPL/IR and get a job with say BA or BMI or Aer Lingus (only ones off the top off my head that offer free training) then you will go onto the year 1 F/O salary scale. You will get type rated and line trained at no cost to yourself. With each additional year of service you go up the pay scales.
AFAIK Easy only take low timer CPL/IR's from CTC so there is no real comparison in year 1. However, in the past you could conceivably join Easy from another airline as a inexperienced F/O with low hours on say a turbo prop or light jet. What most junior F/O's at Easy would say is that there is a big difference in salary between a direct entry F/O and a CTC cadet who as you point out is paying back a proportion of their training costs.
There have been calculations done and posted here on pprune in the past on the salary sacrifice and the "real" cost of going down the CTC route which you can read about. Suffice to say its not a sponsorship per se no matter how you dress it up.
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It's not sponsorship, it never has been, you pay for the training yourself with a loan ( which you are always responsible for ) and then pay it back out of you salary.
Your salary is effectively the same as a direct entry F/O who isn't on the wings scheme, it's just paid to you differently ( mainly with regards to tax ). If the direct entry F/O has flying loans then he/she's in the same situation as a CTC Wings guy with the HSBC loan. You earn the same. The benefit over other schemes is the job placement record. Period.
WBV
Your salary is effectively the same as a direct entry F/O who isn't on the wings scheme, it's just paid to you differently ( mainly with regards to tax ). If the direct entry F/O has flying loans then he/she's in the same situation as a CTC Wings guy with the HSBC loan. You earn the same. The benefit over other schemes is the job placement record. Period.
WBV
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Wowzers
"It's not sponsorship, it never has been, you pay for the training yourself with a loan (which you are always responsible for) and then pay it back out of you salary. "
I was told (when I asked CTC to clarify this for me BEFORE i committed) that it IS a sponsored scheme because although you do pay the loan back out of your salary, the airline pays you extra (in one way or another) so that in effect the airline is paying your loan back for you....minus interest and tax (in some cases).
"which you are always responsible for" - unfortuantely this bit is completely correct
But you gotta pay to play in this game ...one way or another
B
I was told (when I asked CTC to clarify this for me BEFORE i committed) that it IS a sponsored scheme because although you do pay the loan back out of your salary, the airline pays you extra (in one way or another) so that in effect the airline is paying your loan back for you....minus interest and tax (in some cases).
"which you are always responsible for" - unfortuantely this bit is completely correct
But you gotta pay to play in this game ...one way or anotherB
