Expert: D. Norkus - 7/5/2007

Question
Dottie,
Hello, my name is Jeannie-Marie and I am trying to find out if there are any scholarships for women pilots?  A pilot friend told me that it would cost me about 61K, but they would take me from no experience to flight ready in six months.  61K might as well be 61 million dollars as I am a single mother without child support.  Is there any hope out there for funding?  Any direction or help is appreciated!

Answer
Jeannie-Marie

Yes, there are scholarships for women pilots.

However those scholarships generally only pay a token amount and no where close to the amount of money it is going to take you to get certificated and rated to apply for an airline job. Typically, grants from organizations like the International Organization of Women Pilots a.k.a. the "Ninety-Nines"(oldest aviation organization in the USA, named after the number of founding members) and Women In Aviation International (www.wai.org) are about $1,000 per award. They both have awards thay pay for the Private Pilot for 1 or 2 applicants each year but nothing like what I think you may be hoping to find. The International Society of Women Airline Pilots (www.iswap.org) even has a scholarship for single mothers but you need to have a serious start on your flight ratings to prove commitment to even qualify.

To see a listing of scholarships for women, visit my site about just that- http://www.geocities.com/av8trxx99/page2.html

I created it from a list of awards I made through out the years while I was training and added to it as I found more resources. There are links to other award sites as well.

If you really want to get into this business you are more than likely going to have to take out loans for the better part of $45K. That would be the cheap end via a fast track program from zero experience to regional first officer in about a year and a half. You are also going to have to take a hard look at the affect this choice will have on you, your kids and your family. (If you have extended family you can count on to help, they will be a great asset, esp if you have to leave on 4 day trips!) I cannot underestimate the sacrifices you are going to have to make personally and financially to get to the cockpit. As you know, flight training is expensive and once you do land a job the pay is horrible. Most regionals start around $21K/year and it will take a couple years to get over the $30K mark. I strongly suggest to familiarize yourself as much as possible with both the positives and negatives of such a career choice so you will know exactly what you are getting yourself into. More on that at my site below...

To help in that regard, use these resouces:

The Women Pilots Email Network (training and career advice on your questions right in your mailbox)-
http://www.ninety-nines.org/emailnetworks.html

You should definitely consider joining the organization as well. I have found their support very valuable. Plus after a year of membership you can apply for an award to pay the entire cost of one rating or certificate.

Aspiring pilot career info website- http://www.jetcareers.com

My own training & careers FAQ page with many links for further info at http://www.pilotcareer.info

I hope these resources can help get you started. Let me know what else you need.

Dottie