Bristol.gs or CATS distance learning?

[sasshaun]

Not heard many bad words against either.

CATS is cheaper.

Bristol I guess has a better / more established reputation.

Opinions? Looking to start later this year.

Thanks

[laverda62]

At the end of the day, to pass the exams you need to know the material. CAT's worked for me at Ģ999, why pay more. All you get from the CAA is one piece of paper if you pass. The HOT and their other main instructor are very knowledgable and ground lectures interesting. The programme is felxible and ground schools only a week long. Pay them a visit.

[colette]

Groundschool

Both schools are very good, I'd say it all comes down to your own personal situation. I'm with CATS at the moment and the flexibility and price of the course were the biggest deciding factors for me when deciding on which school to go with. I think the two week brush up before the exam week with Bristol is an excellent idea and have heard from friends there that it works very well, but unfortunately I would never have managed 3 weeks at a time (twice) off from work. Also the flexibility of your exams/module subjects/sittings has been incredibly helpful, with limited days off work it's been fine for me to just say 'Right Im going to do all the Monday exams this sitting' or whatever, literally whatever suits you best and the head of training and other instructors really do their utmost to work everything around for you.

I've never heard a bad word said about Bristol either though.

Totally depends on what's best for you, why not contact them both and get a feel for them?

All the best with your decision

C

[Trolle]

I second what collette said. It's up to your personal preference as I am sure that both are adequate.

I chose CATS because of the lower fee and the shorter brush-up course. I was on the fence regarding Bristol, but did not want to take 2 weeks off for the course every time.

I also did what collette did, and went to the exams 3 times. The first time I followed CATS stage 3 with 3 exams. The next 2 times I took all the exams on Monday/Tuesday/Wednesday & Thursday/Friday respectively.

If I were you I would choose the one that you are most comfortable with, as both deliver the necessary quality.

[XXPLOD]

I paid CATS a visit at their new premises recently. Seems to be well set up and friendly. Price is a big factor and they have got quite a few innovative ideas to develop their online course.
Come payday this month I think I'll be signing up and doing Stage 3 first. For me the flexibility and 1 week brushups are a bonus.

[b.a. Baracus]

Again, I echo what everyone else has said.

The main attraction with CATS was the one week brush up, as there is no way I would have got three weeks off work in one go.

They are very flexible, like other people I am starting with Stage 3, then Stage 2 and finally Stage 1 as it fits best with my requirements.

So far I have found the training materials to be of high standards and instructors are always on hand to answer any questions.

[UAV689]

Not many people will be able to give you a balanced answer on this as people have only every done one groundschool!

I have gone with CATS, great price, great notes, and they are always developing new ideas to teach. Stuart is a top teacher and I throughly enjoyed his lectures.

Couple of questions you need to ask yourself -

Distance, are ethier school commuatable, as accomodation for brush ups adds to the price, its also nice to be able to pop to school of you have any issues.

Brush up weeks, will work allow you 3 weeks in a row of for bristol? ( 2 weeks brush up then a week of exams? ) CATS is way more flexible in allowing you 3 modules, in any order you wish. They are sensibly grouped together in a logical way, which is a bit easier to get to grips with then sitting 7 exams a time at bristol.

Price - CATS are great value.

I chose CATS, got an old set of oxford manuals for Ģ50, and use the bristol qbank. WOrked a treat for me so far!

[sasshaun]

Not many people will be able to give you a balanced answer on this as people have only every done one groundschool!

I did think about that after I posted!!!

Thanks for all the advice guys. And UAV closest FTO to me is OAA and nooooo way am I going to that place, commuting will be a pain in the ass for me whichever I choose for the distance learning, but hey ho.

I think the flexibility of CATS may well be the deciding factor, as a few of you said it would be hard to get the 3 weeks off work, I think I would struggle also.

Again, thanks for all the advice.

Shaun

[XL319]

Cost and location and that it is broken into 3 rather than 2 decided it for me.

Cheddar is too out of the way for me being from the north, CATS is straight along the M1/A1.

Bristol have an excellent reputation and also their QB is second to none. If they were closer to me it would have been a tough call.

[CALLE13]

Books and Location

Hi!

Im looking forward to join CATS DL training. I have a few questions about accomodations and transportation to the center.

I saw the list of B&B. How is the transportation from and to the center? Do I need to rent a car or can I go by bus or train from Luton airport???

What kind of paper study guides do they provide with the 1599GBP course?

Im interested on buying the Oxford Jeppessen books, anybody interested on selling me those???

Thank you!

[take_0ff]

@sasshaun and CALLE13
I just found this thread and was wondering, how it went.
Have you finished DL and ground school?
How was it?
Any experiences you want to share?
How was ground school?
Did you have any troubles with DL?
Where did you stay?

take_0ff

[zondaracer]

I did Bristol GS and I found the two week brush up course wonderful, but I quit my job so I can afford the time off. The support from Bristol is excellent and all the staff are very professional and extremely well experience and knowledgeable. I donīt have any experience with CATS, but Bristol worked for me.

[4redsyourdead]

I also did BGS and would recommend them to anyone. The instructors are fantastic ( special mention to John and Tom ) and the quality of the training is extremely good.The brush up courses were enjoyable and prepare you well for the exams.

Also heard from friends the same about CATS, dont think you could go wrong with either!!!!

[Beau-Angel]

I went to CATS and can recommend them (residential some years ago). I popped in to their new offices in Luton to say hi a few months ago. They were running training on that day and were very busy, so I sat in on the class for a bit reminiscing about GNAV . Quite a complex subject for me as a non-mathematician, but made easy by CATS guides and instructors helping me through.
I cant believe the course price hasnt gone up from what I paid quite a few years ago too.

Have fun and enjoy the learning experience!