Thinking about joining the Air Force

[matt220]

Thanks everyone for your help!

It seems I have much more thinking to do, I got the impression from this video (http://www.forces.ca/en/job/pilot-32 @2:50 it is mentioned) that you did not have to be a university grad to become a pilot. You can see why it was a bit misleading, but thank you to those who cleared everything up. 

Also:

Here's how to become a pilot after dropping out of university:

5. Get turned down multiple times, for reasons that will not be explained to you. 
6. Finally get accepted after 9 years of service as an NCM.
7. Be sent to a university to finish the degree you should have completed the first time.
8. Pilot training.

9. Fail pilot training. Become ACSO.

:rofl:

EDIT:

Yep, I've been there! I tell people all the time that my worst day working still trumps my best day at school. But it was all worth it in the end when I got my degree. You miss out on a lot of opportunities without that expensive piece of paper.

Sounds exactly like me! I know I'll miss out on opportunities, but despite what many think, university is not the only option after high school. Keep in mind I haven't dropped out yet, but I probably will if I figure something out, or land an apprenticeship in a trade I like.

 

[aesop081]

:rofl:

You think it is funny, find a large group of ACSOs and ask how many started out as pilot trainees.

 

[matt220]

You think it is funny, find a large group of ACSOs and ask how many started out as pilot trainees.

I was actually just laughing at the image I embedded of how I would expect one to react going through all that to become a pilot and fail. Do you not have embedded images activated?

 

[Melbatoast]

Thanks everyone for your help!

It seems I have much more thinking to do, I got the impression from this video (http://www.forces.ca/en/job/pilot-32 @2:50 it is mentioned) that you did not have to be a university grad to become a pilot. You can see why it was a bit misleading, but thank you to those who cleared everything up. 

I haven't seen the video, but there used to be a program called OCTP that would allow high school grads to become officers, and there was no obligation to get a degree.  That's long over and was replaced by CEOTP, which didn't require a degree on entry, but you have to promise to get one by the end of your engagement.  The CF HATES CEOTP, because it's very hard to complete a degree while serving, and it has always been a rare option for off-the-street folks.  The CF desperately wants a fully degreed officer corps, so really places an emphasis on the degree-granting programs (ROTP/UTPNCM/SCP - you'll have to explore the acronyms on your own).

If you want to be a pilot, 3 more years of very mild inconvenience for the shot is hardly a problem.  I can tell you that after 9 years of Reg Force service, the past year at a civilian university has been a goddamn dream.

edit - as well, university gets more interesting the further in you get.  I've always found first and second year courses mind-numbing.  In upper level classes you really get the freedom to explore and contribute.  I had to switch majors so have to take a number of 1- and 200 level courses that are pretty brutal.  The 3- and 400 levels that I'm able to take, I love.

 

[alocin]

edit - as well, university gets more interesting the further in you get.  I've always found first and second year courses mind-numbing.  In upper level classes you really get the freedom to explore and contribute. 

This is so true. The first year, possibly two, are DESIGNED to weed out people who can't cut the cheese. A widely stated stat is that approximately 50% of people who start their first year of university drop out.  I had a first year science course with 340 students in it.... how can that be engaging? By the time you get to the later years, classes are small seminars and you're generally enrolled in courses that you're genuinely interested in and often they have a handful of students sitting around a table with a professor, in a dialogue format. It gets better.

Good luck, whatever you choose to do

 

[2010newbie]

Thanks everyone for your help!

It seems I have much more thinking to do, I got the impression from this video (http://www.forces.ca/en/job/pilot-32 @2:50 it is mentioned) that you did not have to be a university grad to become a pilot.

To become a Pilot you have to have the degree, but you do not need one to apply. If you think you want to be a Pilot then apply........

I went to the recruiting centre in Toronto when I was a few courses in towards a degree. There was a CF Pilot working there that told me to finish the degree and come back to apply as DEO about 4-6 months before finishing the degree. A few years went by and when I was about 6 months from finishing I went back to the recruiting centre. It turned out that there were no DEO applications being accepted and even if they were, my degree wasn't being accepted anymore.

In the end I applied as ROTP and I was accepted. In hindsight, I should have just applied ROTP to begin with. The point is that things change. Apply now. If you're not successful then continue working on things that will improve your application (and in turn improve your other career options) and continue to apply while pursuing other avenues.

 

[Loachman]

The CF desperately wants a fully degreed officer corps

It will take the CF until at least early-2016 to achieve that.

 

[Strike]

It will take the CF until at least early-2016 to achieve that.

That's when you're out, eh? 

 

[Loachman]

I'm still hoping for another CRA extension. I could do this forever.

 

[AGD]

It turned out that there were no DEO applications being accepted and even if they were, my degree wasn't being accepted anymore.

Out of curiousity, which degree did you have?

 

[SentryMAn]

I would prefer to have an educated Canadian Forces Officer Corps much more then a degree wielding corps.  Sometimes the two are not related  LOL

 

[Pusser]

You think it is funny, find a large group of ACSOs and ask how many started out as pilot trainees.

When I first entered CFSAL, the Colonel Commandant of the Logistics Branch came to see my class.  He asked each of us to stand up and tell him about ourselves.  Out of 40 candidates, about half had started in pilot training.  To a man (and occasional woman) each former pilot trainee stood up and said, "I used to be a pilot.  Then I saw the light and became a Logistics Officer..."

When it became my turn, I said, "I used to be a MARS Officer*.  I didn't see that @#$! light and after the eye test, they made me a Logistics Officer."  The Colonel Commandant (RAdm Tucker (Ret'd)) broke out in a huge grin and said, "That's exactly what happened to me!"

 

[Loachman]

Not for nothing was Portage known as "Nav Selection Centre".

 

[2010newbie]

Out of curiousity, which degree did you have?

Sorry, missed this last time....

Associates degree in Professional Aeronautics from ERAU.