Expert: D. Norkus - 2/16/2009

Question
Dear Dottie,

I'm a senior in high school and my goal is to someday become a commercial airline pilot. Next year I'm planning on attending the University of North Dakota and going through their commercial aviation program.

One advantage I would have of going to UND is that I wouldn't have to pay out of state tuition. I live in Wisconsin where we have a Mid Western Exchange program where the tuition is only slightly higher than the in state tuition. However due to all the costs I expect to be paying I'll need to get loans. Obviously there's a lot of factors that will play into this, but I'm guessing I'll probably be about $50,000 in debt by the time I graduate if I work during college about 10 hours a week.

So my first question is, is do you know if it will be hard it get a student loan now days with the slow economy?

Secondly, I'm not sure if you're familiar with the site Jetcareers.com but I've been reading the forums at that site by some regional airline pilots who say that paying off loans on your first years of pay will be extremely difficult to do.  So my next question is would I be able to survive paying off my loan payments of $50,000 during my first years as a regional airline FO? I really want to be an airline pilot and I'm willing to make sacrifices to get there, but I want to be able to at least make a liveable wage.

Also I want to make sure I'm making the right decision of going to UND next year. I've visited the school and took a tour of the aerospace program and really like it, but I want to know if you think it will be worth it for all the costs.

Thanks for your help,

Eric

Answer
Eric

What you have been reading has a lot of validity and you are smart to be concerned about it. I have been a visitor to the Jetcareers.com boards for several years and do not doubt how difficult they say it can be. (Also try AirlinePilotCentral.com) Thankfully, I did not find myself in debt when I was hired and it made life much better on such a fixed income as a new hire regional F/O. "Liveable wage" is unfortunately something that doesn't really describe new hire pilot pay.

Speaking from my point of view I can only encourage you to take the most cost efficient route you can for your training and education. If it means going to a community college first, do consider that (I did so) and then transfer to UND to cut costs. Look into scholarships, maybe you will qualify- AvScholars.com. A few F/Os I worked with who went to a big name Aviation University that cost them large student loans lamented they wished they had majored in something else (remember an aviation degree isn't very useful if you are furloughed) and done their flight training locally. Any money you do not have to borrow will be a blessing when you find yourself trying to live on $600-800 net every two weeks. Make no mistake, the first few years could be very tough. I cannot underestimate the amount of personal and financial sacrifice you may have to make to get established in this career. There are several hundred regional F/Os right now that are currently furloughed, so imagine how hard it is for them to pay their student loans as an unemployed pilot (hopefully they have found some sort of job, which is why it is helpful to have at least a non-aviation major). In 2001, I had 4 months with my airline and found myself furloughed from flying for over 2 years. Always remember, a downturn in the industry means you may be on the street if you don't have much seniority. Keep that in mind in regards to what you may want to major/minor in and how much money you borrow to spend on your education/training.

It may sound like I am being overly negative (and maybe I am) but I don't want to sugar coat it, especially when the industry is so depressed. It may take several years to recover from this slump. That said, if you can deal with the negatives it is really great to get paid to fly. The view can't be beat! Trying to remember that on your 6th trip of the day, eating your 'dinner' from a vending machine isn't easy, but it does beat an office job.

Regarding the loan, not being a banker I can't say whether you would be able to get a student loan. That could only be addressed by a financial institution and you should inquire with several to be sure to get the best rate you can if you can get funded.

Hope this helps,

Dottie
http://www.pilotcarer.info