| Graduating from college? The sky is the limit | | | | you do not have to go to work every weekday from |
| Attention college seniors: I am the voice of your | | | | 9 to 5, you typically get more time off than at a typical |
| not-so-distant future. I was once where you are now, | | | | job, and you very rarely see any kind of a supervisor |
| sweating and worrying about my future, forced to | | | | or boss. Plus, working holidays may mean having a |
| answer the never-ending question from family and | | | | hotel room in Times Square on New Year's Eve! |
| friends: "What are you going to do when you | | | | Landing A Flight Attendant Job Is Difficult |
| graduate?" | | | | Landing a job at one of the major airlines is very tricky |
| The Onset of Panic | | | | since the number of applicants far outweighs the |
| I can relate. But you do not want sympathy; you want | | | | number of positions. There is good news though: most |
| advice. The best advice I can give you is to relax. You | | | | airlines are growing and hiring more flight attendants |
| do not have to figure out the rest of your life in the | | | | than ever. And a college degree does carry weight. |
| next six months. You have a lifetime to sketch out | | | | While no carrier I know of requires an applicant to |
| those dreaded career goals. In the meantime, take a | | | | have a degree, many of the flight attendants I know |
| job you can enjoy: teach in an under-served school | | | | have undergraduate degrees. A few have even |
| system, try your luck in Hollywood, work your way | | | | pursued advanced degrees while continuing to fly. |
| across the world, or do as I did, and take to the skies | | | | Some airlines actually recruit on campus, though many |
| -- become a flight attendant. | | | | conduct open interview sessions around the country. |
| Peace Corps Volunteer or Flight Attendant? | | | | Consider applying if you've harbored that steward/ess |
| I joined the "real world" just over a year ago, after four | | | | dream since your first plane ride, or if the job sounds |
| unfocused years of college. The flexibility of my | | | | fun and you do not know what else you'd like to do. If |
| psychology major allowed me to explore my many | | | | you are headed to grad school but want a break or |
| interests, from Latin-American music to the social | | | | need to save some money, think about deferring. |
| constructions of health. I studied abroad for a year, | | | | Airlines do not require minimum commitments; you can |
| wrote for the college newspaper and conducted HIV | | | | fly for a month, a year, or 30 years. If you only want |
| education programs. By senior year, I was confused. I | | | | to fly temporarily or decide it is not for you, no problem. |
| did not know what to do following graduation -- which | | | | You are not locked in. JFK-based JetBlue even |
| of those diverse paths to pursue. My senior year I took | | | | designed a limited one-year program with recent grads |
| the minimum course load (12 hours in the Fall and an | | | | in mind. |
| awesome 8 hours in the Spring) in order to devote | | | | As I mentioned earlier, competition for these jobs is |
| most of my time and energy to the job search. I spent | | | | intense, and I recommend checking out |
| most of those days in the library, glued to a computer | | | | AirlineCareer.com's online resource (forgive me for |
| screen, combing through every imaginable online job | | | | sounding like an advertisement). This will give you the |
| listing. There were jobs I wanted that I never could | | | | best opportunity to get hired. Of course, you could just |
| have gotten and jobs I could have gotten but never | | | | wing it, but I can almost guarantee you won't get hired |
| wanted. Graduation day loomed, and I was freaking | | | | without some assistance. |
| out. | | | | Why It's All Worth It |
| All was not lost, though. I had two very real possibilities. | | | | The benefits that come with an airline job cannot be |
| The Peace Corps was a definite interest. I could | | | | beat, especially for those of us just starting to make |
| experience some far-away place and contribute to | | | | our way in the world. Considering the work involved, |
| the betterment of the world. The other idea emerged | | | | the pay is decent. But it is the free travel that lures |
| from my closet obsession with air travel, which I finally | | | | many into the industry. No matter how long you've |
| managed to do something about. Along with the | | | | worked for an airline, it is undeniably cool to be able to |
| Peace Corps, I applied for a flight attendant position. I | | | | hop on a plane and go anywhere on a day off. This |
| know…it seems strange to mention being a | | | | past year alone, I spent Thanksgiving in London and |
| Peace Corps volunteer and a flight attendant in the | | | | New Year's in Frankfurt. For fun, I vacationed in |
| same breath. But both captured my overwhelming love | | | | Thailand. "What are you going to do when you |
| of travel. It was not an easy decision, but in the end, I | | | | graduate?" |
| decided to put the Peace Corps on hold and take the | | | | Thousands of Cabin Crew around the world enjoy |
| job as a flight attendant. It was time to have some fun | | | | having an exciting and varied career which gives them |
| and fulfill an old dream. | | | | the chance to travel, meet people and use |
| Is It Right For Me? | | | | interpersonal skills every working day of their lives. |
| You would not be reading this article if you weren't at | | | | This is the reason why we receive hundreds of calls |
| least mildly interested in an airline career. But how do | | | | and emails from people asking for assistance in |
| you know if it is right for you? I have friends who often | | | | achieving their dream job as Cabin Crew. |
| get frustrated with their 9 to 5 office jobs and toss | | | | The job entails performing safety and service duties |
| around the idea of joining me. After we get past the | | | | which ensure that air travellers are flying in a safe |
| benefits (which are fantastic) and get into the actual | | | | environment, whilst receiving excellent standards of |
| work, their interest sometimes waivers. It is a | | | | friendly service. |
| demanding job, and it takes more than a "people | | | | With the continued expansion in the air transport |
| person" to solve crises - both large and small - in such | | | | industry airlines are seeking thousands of applications |
| tight quarters and with very limited resources. You | | | | from good quality people with the right knowledge and |
| must possess good self-esteem and the sense not to | | | | character for the job of Cabin Crew. |
| take everything to heart cranky passengers and | | | | Finding good quality applicants, who adapt well to airline |
| crewmembers throw at you. You have to be able to | | | | training courses and the demands of the job is |
| work strange hours, including nights, weekends and | | | | certainly becoming harder. Airlines receive hundreds of |
| holidays. But of course, there are many advantages: | | | | applications and normally few are successful. |