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Does it really matter where you get your training?


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Ok, Here's another one... I have looked at pretty much every helicopter flight school in the US, over 160 of them via the Internet. And my question is this: Is it really going to matter where I went to flight school?  Do companies look at that? Or is it just a matter of ratings and hours?  Would it be better for me to go to a "big name" school with higher prices or could I go to an "unknown school"  with very good pricing as long as I am getting good instruction?  Thanks for your imput

 

Jake

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Flight schools are not ranked like universities when it comes to resumes.  There aren't any *official* accreditations or tiers or flight schools.  At no point will any employer look back at which flight school you attented and give you better marks than someone else.  All they look to see is if you were military trained or civilian trained.

 

There's only one school I can think of right now that I would definately NOT want on a resume.  And whether everything said about that school is true or not...........But the name definately raises eyebrows and tempers when mentioned.  (I'll keep my opinion on that school to myself.)

 

Go to a school where you'll get your hours and ratings EFFICIENTLY and for a REASONABLE price.  Notice I didn't say "fast" and "cheap".  Don't buy into these 90 day Commercial/CFI programs.  Plan on paying around $220/hr for an R22 dual and don't rule out a school who charges more than that--it may be worth it!

 

Good luck!

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The size of the school is not an indicator of the quality of your training, but it will have a bearing on your initial career.

 

You have to look at two points in your job path - the first being the first job you will have: a new CFII. Being a graduate of a large 141 school has advantages while looking for that first instructing job. First, there's a fair to good chance that you might land a job at the school where you trained, second, smaller schools tend to check in with the big schools when the small schools need a CFII. (Note I write CFII, not CFI - you severly limit your chances of getting a job these days unless you have a double I.) So going to a place like HAI, Vortex, Quantum, etc will make it easier to find a CFI job right away. More important is your willingness and ability to relocate...

 

The secont point on the path is when you hit your 1,000-hour mark. Here, it matters not where you trained, but it matters a bit where you worked in the meantime. Not the name, but what you've been doing. Here is where a smaller school might be an advantage, as you will most likely have done a larger variety of flying - photo, survey, air rides, tours, etc. In addition, you will have flown with a huge variety of folks, not all of whom were career-bound.

 

The people hiring at the 1,000-hour level are looking for solid skills, no bad habits, a good attitude, and a clean record (don't worry if you've had a student help you bend an aircraft, as long as the NTSB didn't find you directly at fault doing something dumb, it won't matter as long as you don't try to hide it). At this point in your job trajectory, nobody cares where you got your ratings, just what you've done since.

 

Hope this helps!

John

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There's only one school I can think of right now that I would definately NOT want on a resume.  And whether everything said about that school is true or not...........But the name definately raises eyebrows and tempers when mentioned.

 

I realize this is a sore spot among the pilots since there are more pilots in the market and the salaries will be kept lower...

But is that viewed as bad by the hiring companies?  

 

Seems like the hiring company might like the lower cost of business brought on by more competition for the existing pilot jobs.  

So then even this flight training company (whose name shall not be spoken) :) might not be viewed as bad on a resume.

 

Now the other pilots may not speak to you... But that's another issue.  ::crossedarms::

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