Once your in, how will having a college education assist?

shrimpboatcaptain Rookie Western New York

I was just curious....If I am lucky enough to get in to ATC, by that time, I have a BAS in General Aeronautics and will have an MBA in Aviation Management. I was wondering how would that help you in your career in the ATC world. Sorry if this is a stupid question, I'm new to the game.

JamesGrayson Newcomer Washington DC

No stupid questions here. I promise you I will be learning as much as we go along as everyone else!

So, please recognize the following is purely my personal thoughts...

A college degree is never a bad thing. I hired straight off the street while in college and have many times wished I had gone back to finish my degree. Obviously, I am proof that it is not required to move to different positions in your career but I still would have loved to have it.

I encourage anyone who is thinking about a college education to strongly consider it. It is not just about the piece of paper you get at the end. Being an active part of a community is one of the key steps to preparing oneself for the life ahead. Can you do that outside of a campus? Absolutely. In fact, much of the "real life" learning for all will occur elsewhere. But being a part of the college community can help a person be prepared to be an active member of a work community.

So to answer your question...will having a degree automatically give you a leg up on others? Not necessarily. Combined with an attitude of drive, ambition, and a desire to make the place you work better? You can bet that I think so.

James

Roddy_Piper Resident Knucklehead Vegas baby

a degree doesn't help u check out. it has no bearing on you becoming an FPL (full performance level). if u check out, then the degree comes into play.

when promoting (transfer, management, etc) a degree counts for points towards your promotion score. if everything is equal, the person with the degree "should" get the promotion over the one without. that's just on paper though. the good boy network is still king of the promotion score.

JamesGrayson Newcomer Washington DC

Roddy brings a good point that I didn't address. A degree has no bearing on checking out. I should have made that clearer in my post. Thanks for stepping in.

And yes, the level of education is a factor in determining the score of a person's application which is in turn used to create the list of elgible candidates. Once on that list, all are treated as qualified and at that point the assignment of a "score" is fairly well dismissed. The process then switches over to an assessment of the knowledge, skills, and abilities (that is the KSA term you might hear when involved in a bid process.) Yes, many of those are based on education, work experience, etc just like the score so usually there is a correlation but not always. Other items such as interviews and recommendations come into play. While I cannot say that Roddy's other point is a thing of the past, I will say anyone trying to make a good selection will not let it impact their choice.

James

shrimpboatcaptain Rookie Western New York

I appreciate all you feedback.