Hi!So my story is I finished high school and did no further education (due to events out of my control). I want more than anything to be a pilot but its a lot of money.A few questions: I could (hypothetically speaking) study for a degree (any degree but I found one on aeronautics), then find a better job with it and use the better wages to study for a pilots license.OR I could save money on the degree and just jump into getting a license which is much more expensive.It seems you have to be rich to get a license!So, you real world pilots, what is your advice? I'd be interested to hear how you got your licenses. Are airliners more likely to hire someone with a degree, or is it mostly experience that matters? Any help and advice is greatly appreciated. Instead of it being a distant dream maybe there's some way I can do this that I haven't thought of.

If airlines is your goal it is two fold.Skipping the degree to get your ratings would allow you to build time faster and get on with a regional (assuming US based) quicker. This in turn will allow you to get more turbine/ME time before your college competitors. However, with Mesa going belly up, Skywest on a hiring freeze, Frontier being bought by Republic, and AMR furloughing it is tough to get on with any regional now. And if you get furloughed what will you do? The degree will help with obtaining a job outside of the airlines when times are tough. Also degrees from certain colleges have the perk of getting you a bridge program with airlines allowing you to get on with a regional at 350-500TT and a preferred interview slot. Plus colleges have internships. Those can get you a job with a Major much quicker than folks in the regionals. Also when hiring times are tough airlines do lean towards a pilot with a degree. Doesn't really matter what kind of degree but one from ERAU, UND, Kent, etc helps. Most majors still require a degree to obtain an interview. The catch with a degree and then getting your ratings after is real life. You might not be able to earn enough money to obtain your ratings or life changes will cause you not to finish. Here is what I would recommend and again if you are US based. Go to a Aviation University with a diverse degree catalog. Obtain your degree and ratings at the same time. You may need financial assistance to do so but it is best way. On the degree find a major or minor that is not pilot specific. Management, engineering, ATC, Air Safety, etc. Because when the time comes that you cannot fly for pay you will have something to fall back on. Here is another option. Check out British Airways and Cathay Pacific's pilot development program. Basically they train you from ground up and get you into the right seat or FE for CP immediately. The catch is the slots are very competitive and are rare now. CP still had openings last time I checked but they require you live in Hong Kong now for min of 2 years after training. Good Luck!

Thanks for that. I am not US based unfortunately or it'd be much easier, I think. I'll keep looking around I guess.

Go to other discussion forums where you have many professional pilots (like pprune, etc.). Some of the pilots you meet there may actually be from your country and offer suggestions much better tailored to where you live.