ATP Flight School thinks it has the solution to the problems aspiring airline pilots will face beginning in three years when they will be required to have 1,500 hours to get a job. ATP and Mountain State University have teamed to offer a college degree and flight training at any of ATP’s 22 nationwide locations.
The program was officially announced a few months ago, but further explored as part of AOPA Aviation Summit last week in Long Beach, Calif. ATP said its program offers students a competitive advantage because instead of roughly 250 hours of experience they might receive by graduation at a standard university, they expect graduates to have approximately 1,500 hours by the time they finish the degree program at ATP.
The program is available as both a bachelor’s and an associate’s degree. Students are generally awarded an associate’s degree and a have earned CFI certificates by 16 months, allowing them to instruct while finishing the bachelor’s degree. The bachelor’s degree takes as little as three years to complete, and is set at approximately $90,000 for the degree and flight training. An ATP official further added that much of the training is in multiengine aircraft.
Classes start multiple times a year. Visit ATP’s website for more information.
