Top Tips For Choosing An Aviation College

Are you a big fan of airplanes? Is it your dream to be a pilot one day? Whether you want to learn to fly so that you can get a job in aviation or you simply want to learn how to fly for fun, learning how to fly can be an extremely rewarding experience. But in order to learn how to fly, you'll need to decide where and how you want to learn. If you're having trouble deciding between different aviation colleges, here are a few tips:

Decide why you want to fly: Aviation colleges that teach you the things you need in order to get your commercial pilot's license can be much more strict than obtaining your private pilot's license. A commercial school may be more like a traditional school that you're familiar with, having you log classroom time and learn theories before you ever get to even fly in a simulator. Lessons to get a private pilot's license may be much more relaxed, with the school sometimes consisting of just one or two airplanes and a similar number of pilots. 

Make a list of things you want to learn: If you want to be a commercial pilot, this may be a very straightforward list. However, some aviation colleges may only teach you how to fly certain commercial planes, so you'll want to pick one that will teach you how to fly your plane of choice. If you're learning how to fly for fun, decide whether you want to learn how to perform tricks or if you simply want to learn how to fly normally. If you want to learn how to perform aerial acrobatics, you may have to look harder in order to find someone who is willing to teach you.

Set up a budget: How much can you afford to pay right now? Some aviation colleges will expect you to pay for all of your lessons up front. Then, like a regular school, you are supposed to complete all classes in just one or two blocks of time. On the other hand, other schools will let you slow down and take your classes over a longer period of time, allowing you to pay for each course as you go. Paying for everything up front may give you a discount over paying for everything over a few months, but if you have limited income then monthly installments can be a great way to go if you don't have the patience to save up for a lump sum payment.

For more information, see a website such as http://aviation.parkland.edu/.