ATC Age Cutoff

I applied under PubNat2 and made the referral list but haven't heard anything yet. I know there are a lot of applications for the FAA to review, but I am going to age out of the process soon. I called the number on the announcement and was told that you have to have a TOL signed before you turn 31 to avoid being disqualified. They said that is usually done after your interview at the PEPC. At this point, I'm not going to make a PEPC in time. Has anyone heard of any way to extend the age limit or get an in person interview to at least get that step completed? I can be patient with the other steps, I just don't want to miss out on this opportunity because I had a birthday five months after I applied. Any ideas?

No one from your announcement has heard, so that's good news. You'll likely hear next week, to two or three months from now. There really isn't any negotiation about it, or "ideas"...

Your birthday is in October? I hate to be negative, but it will not happen by any means. It was just unreasonable to begin with. The closest PEPC date for your group that I could imagine would be in November, which would still be after your birthday.

I guess it would be worth it to contact some HR representatives, to see what they might have to offer you -- don't waste your time with the Careers hotline. Find Elaine McCollum's phone number, and give her a ring. I've heard others have found her to be immensely helpful, but it might be difficult on something that they have such a strict rule regarding.

I hope that this is of some help.

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PUBNAT3,4,5,6,7. Hurrrrr.

5/30/2008 ---> Applied OTS (PUBNAT3).
7/17/2008 ---> AT-SAT Authorization.
7/29/2008 ---> AT-SAT e-mail.
8/15/2008 ---> AT-SAT.
8/19/2008 ---> AT-SAT score posted.
11/20/2008 ---> Geo. Preference (PUBNAT3).
11/26/2008 ---> Geo. Preference (PUBNAT4).
1/8/2009 ---> Referral list (PUBNAT3).
1/8/2009 ---> Referral list (PUBNAT4).
1/12-16/2009 ---> Selection Panels in OKC.
1/22/2009 ---> E-mail prognostication.

Presently awaiting an offer.

If all else fails, look into Robinson Aviation. A lady I met at a tower nearby which is contracted out to Robinson was in a similar situation -- she applied too late to make the age cutoff, but Robinson gladly picked her up and trained her. Probably spent less time in the application process, too.

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Applied PUBNAT3/4/5/6 - May 31, et al.
AT-SAT - Aug. 14

Thanks for the suggestions. I was able to get in touch with Elaine McCollum and she lived up to her reputation. They got me set up with an interview at my local facility, which I had today. I will have to do the other steps separately (medical, psych, etc) but I met the cutoff. If anyone else is in the same boat that I was, the person I met today said to contact the training manager at your local facility and explain the situation to them so they can get in contact with HR on your behalf.

Robinson Aviation(RVA) is a contract company, they have no age requirement. Same with Serco and Midwest ATC.

All of these companies require previous experience... as in a CTO certification. They wont even take radar experience so they definitely wont take someone off teh street with zero experience. They are contractors... there is no profit to be made by training people from the ground up only to have them leave a few months/years later.

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~controller since 99'