When to start sending resumes

HeliUtah · October 1, 2009

I am wrapping up my CFI/CFII training within the next 3-4 weeks, and was wondering if it is too soon to start sending out resumes. Any thoughts?

kodoz · October 1, 2009

Go hand a resume to your flight school's office manager/owner right now. If nothing else, you'll get some feedback on it. As for trying to get in with another flight school...now, then, later, I don't think it makes too much of a difference. If they have a spot and you are that stellar a candidate, they'll wait 2 weeks for you, or they'll hire you even if you've been an armchair pilot for 6 months. A lot of guys on this list will tell you that hand-delivering a resume is a good strategy as well. Think about going on a road trip (and if you itemize your taxes, you might be able to deduct the expenses for it).

rick1128 · October 1, 2009

Go hand a resume to your flight school's office manager/owner right now. If nothing else, you'll get some feedback on it. As for trying to get in with another flight school...now, then, later, I don't think it makes too much of a difference. If they have a spot and you are that stellar a candidate, they'll wait 2 weeks for you, or they'll hire you even if you've been an armchair pilot for 6 months. A lot of guys on this list will tell you that hand-delivering a resume is a good strategy as well. Think about going on a road trip (and if you itemize your taxes, you might be able to deduct the expenses for it).

Overall, this is pretty good advice. First I would spend some time going over your resume and cover letter. If your school is REALLY interested in their students' success, the Chief Pilot/Instructor should be willing to give you an honest review of your paperwork. He/she might be willing to let you look at the resume pile they already have. Concerning your resume and cover letter, DO NOT REINVENT THE WHEEL. See what others use and pick out the best parts to use. One page ONLY. One of the biggest mistakes made by low time pilots and ex-military is making their resumes more than one page. I have been in this business for over 30 years, have done a lot of neat and interesting things and my resume is (you guessed it) one page. A resume is not going to get you a job. All it will get you is an interview. You are on your own in regards to getting the job.

When you reply to a employment ad, FOLLOW DIRECTIONS. If they say fax it, you fax it to the number given. If they say e-mail it, e-mail it. If they say snail mail it, find the nearest snail to take it. It is a test. If you can not follow directions on something as simple as this, WHY should they trust you with their expensive equipment and their reputation?

As for the road trip, personally I wouldn't unless they were nearby. I have gotten interviews by knocking on doors and by just sending a resume and cover letter. The bigger the operations, the less likely you are to get an interview by just showing up. In fact some employment ads clearly state that NO WALK-INS. The further away the job is, the less I suggest that you do a walk-in. In fact networking would probably help you more in the job finding arena.

choppedair · October 2, 2009

It's one thing to make contacts at schools now and introduce yourself, but handing out resumes before you're qualified seems a little "off" to me personally.

I do, however, agree with hand delivering resumes once you are qualified. Most schools probably receive tons of paper/email resumes every week and yours probably won't stand out much from the others. Go out and meet people.

Something I try to encourage people to do is go for a flight every now and then (with a new school) during your training. Go on a road trip and stop at a school, meet people, go for a flight and talk to anyone you can there. Then come back with a resume when you are qualified.

Just my $.02.

Galadrium · October 2, 2009

I get several resumes a week from potential pilots. Here's a couple of pointers I would give new CFIs looking for employment.

1. The surest way for me to instantly delete, or throw your resume in the trash is to apply for a position for which you are not presently qualified. Sure you might be getting ready to take the appropriate check-ride very soon. But to me it shows a very presumptuous personality who is willing to rush things. Not a good personality trait in a pilot, imo.

2. Personalize your resume as much as possible for the place you are applying for. Its pretty easy to spot a generic cover letter that someone sent out to every flight school they could find an email address for. That doesn't impress people in a position to hire you very much at all. You should do some homework on the place you are applying for.

I can't tell you how many phone calls I've gotten from brand new CFIs looking for work who didn't know the first thing about my business, or even what type of helicopters we fly. Be ready to answer a question like "what makes you want to work for us?" or "what do you think about the type of aircraft we fly?." You should at least know as much about a business as is on their company website. It amazes me all the CFIs who call me who want to be taken seriously who don't even know anything about what my business does. Remember, you are a professional, be sure to act like one always.

3. Email is the cheapest, quickest way to send out a lot of resumes. However, you are a lot better off sending hard copies and making follow-up phone calls. Or you can start by calling places and seeing if they are looking for pilots before you send anything. The more personal you can make the first contact with a company the more likely you are to be seriously considered for employment.

4. Make sure everything you send a potential employer is proofread and checked for errors. It makes you look extremely unprofessional sending something that isn't factually accurate, or contains misspellings. I once got a resume from a pilot who had 220 hours total time in helicopters, while claiming he also had 220 hours PIC in helicopters.

A lot of this is common sense, but I figured I'd pass this along. Hope it helps.

Edited October 2, 2009 by Galadrium

kodoz · October 2, 2009

A lot of this is common sense, but I figured I'd pass this along. Hope it helps.

It's not common sense...I have technical writers (people who write things for a living) send me cover letters and resumes that are confusing and haven't been proofread. Probably the absolute best advice in Galadrium's reply (and it's all good) is to personalize your resume. That advice right there is more important than the answer to the OP's original question. I'm never impressed by somebody who says they've sent out 100 resumes: it screams "spammer."

I thought I'd clarify the advice about sending a resume before you meet the minimums. Just a resume from an unqualified candidate the CP doesn't know isn't worth anything, and it's downright irritating for an advertised position that states minimum qualifications (in most cases*). If you're going to a job fair or happen to visit an employer, have a resume with your current info ready to hand to them, even if you don't meet the minimums. Expect that it will go in the trash later--and that's ok--but it will probably get a look if there's a voice or a face associated with it. You may get some helpful feedback about what you can do to groom yourself for the job, and the call or meeting plus your resume helps establish a relationship that you can build on until you meet minimums and there's a job available. Done correctly, you are demonstrating that you can set a goal and work towards it over the long-term--done incorrectly, you come off as presumptuous, inattentive, pushy, and/or irritating, and you'll be lucky if you don't make an impression.

I've said it before, and somebody else said it before me: a resume doesn't get you a job, it gets you an interview. Likewise, starting this dialogue before you are qualified is a type of networking that can help get you that interview later, but you have to do it correctly. For the OP, I wouldn't see a problem going to flight schools now, talking to the CP, asking what they like to see in their CFIs, and handing him a resume. You're telling them about yourself moreso than asking for a job right then and there.

Here's the (*) though, and it probably applies only to a very few cases. If you are an extraordinarily good fit for a position but you fall short on one of the qualifications, then the rules change. I'd say send the resume, but you better write a brilliant cover letter that gets your qualifications across clearly and quickly (ie, personalize, personalize, personalize). Back it up with some sort of personal relationship (a call or face-to-face meeting) and you have a shot. For example, if you are a former high school teacher, you've taught driver's ed for 10 years, have your A&P, were a crew chief in a UH-60 while in the military, and you are 2 weeks from your CFI, there are some flight schools that would welcome your experience and would wait a few weeks for you.**

**That's the theory anyway. In this market, there is a surplus of flight instructors, and flight schools are looking to their graduates first for many reasons. If your school isn't ready to snatch you up, you have to ask yourself why another school would.