School of Professional Studies and Management

Professional Pilot Technology

Vermont State University logo

Vermont Technical College will join with Castleton University and Northern Vermont University to become Vermont State University on July 1, 2023.

Visit VermontState.edu to learn more about Professional Pilot Technology for fall 2023.

Learn More and Apply

If you are committed and passionate about flying airplanes, come fly with the Vermont Tech Professional Pilot Technology program. We’re the first college to offer an Aviation degree in the state of Vermont, and we hold our own on a national level too. This program will have you in the air during your first semester and offers the option to complete all 7 FAA certificates and ratings. Gain valuable experience flying in the unique Vermont and New England terrain. You will be learning from career pilots and professionals that maintain their long-term industry connections, increasing your chances for employment opportunities.

Launch 2021 Vermont Flight Academy (Williston)

Still up in the air? Consider that the students in the Professional Pilot program can become Certified Flight Instructors by their junior year and graduate with typically 500 or more flight hours already under their belts. That flight time makes graduates highly valued in the industry. Vermont Tech is authorized by the FAA to certify pilot graduates for the Restricted Airline Transport Pilot (RATP). The authorization is highly advantageous as certified graduates can be hired as professional airline pilots that much sooner, creating a fast track to a career doing what they love.

A student with a Bachelor of Science in Professional Pilot Technology will be able to:

  1. Demonstrate the knowledge and flight skills necessary to attain FAA pilot certificates and ratings
  2. Use critical-thinking and decision-making skills to accurately assess situations and manage risk
  3. Communicate and work effectively as a leader and in multidisciplinary teams
  4. Understand the historic aspects and current developments defining the state and evolution of modern aviation
  5. Engage in professional development and recognize the need for life-long learning
  6. Analyze and interpret data using aeronautical, mathematical, and scientific principles

Educational objectives that are demonstrated during their workforce careers include:

  • Achieving success in the dynamic and growing aviation industry with proper academic and professional certification
  • Demonstrating knowledge of contemporary world-wide aviation industry issues
  • Utilizing specific flying skills to attain FAA certificates and ratings that allow for employment as pilots and flight crew within the international aviation industry
  • Mastering critical thinking and decision-making skills necessary for safe and effective flying
  • Committing to lifelong learning with focus on continuous development of professional skills

Completion of the degree entails intensive motivation and commitment. Pilot certificates or ratings must be completed in their assigned term. This may require flying 4-5 times each week. The Chief Flight Instructor and their assistants are required to follow the published milestones and stage checks for every student to ensure proper completion. The student must make up cancellations or delays on weekends and during scheduled breaks if necessary and must be available to fly seven days per week, including some night flights.

Success in the program requires understanding that consequences incur for noncompliance of scheduling requests, failure to meet milestones, and stage check failures. If continuous interventions are necessary, the student can expect grade reductions or dismissal from the program. Compliance with all schedules, FAA regulations, and course syllabi are a major part of the training for a career in aviation. Students are expected to dress professionally and in accordance with the season at all times.

Curriculum Details

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Job Projections

NATIONAL AVG.
5%
Pilot Technology
6%
That Translates Into

127,100

JOB OPENINGS BETWEEN 2019 - 2029

Projected Employment Growth for Airline & Commercial Pilots, 2019-2029 (source: BLS)

Placement Rate

100%

VTC

vs

88%

NATIONAL

Vermont Tech data: 6 Month Outcome Survey, Class of 2019. National Data: National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE) First Destinations for the College Class of 2018 (October 2018)

Employers

  • BTV/Aeroclub
  • Lakeview Aviation
  • Planesense
  • Private Corporate Jet
  • Republic Airlines
  • Vermont Flight Academy
  • Vermont Tech

Job Titles

  • Certified Flight Instructor
  • Pilot
  • Professor
  • Captain

Ryan Cooney

  • Being a pilot sounded like a really great way to spend a career
  • I chose Vermont Tech for its high placement rates
  • Once I got in a plane, I wanted to do it every day
Read full profile

news

  • 27
    Sep

    GlobalFoundries Inc. (GF) (NASDAQ: GFS), a global leader in feature-rich semiconductor manufacturing, announces its first scholarship program for students at Vermont Tech. The GF Scholarship Program will offer an annual $5,000 scholarship and a paid summer internship to three selected candidates from Vermont Tech’s Mechanical/Manufacturing Engineering Technology, and/or Electrical/Electromechanical Engineering Degree, and/or Diesel, and/or Automotive Technology Program. “Vermont Tech graduates…

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  • 17
    May

    Vermont State University, the first statewide, hybrid higher education institution in the United States, launched its unified brand identity and logo during a live virtual broadcast today. The unveiling is a major milestone in a transformation process unifying three institutions – Castleton University, Northern Vermont University, and Vermont Technical College. Sixteen months ago, the Vermont State Colleges System initiated a…

    Read more  
  • 15
    Apr

    Vermont Technical College’s Construction Management Associate Degree program has been ranked #10 out of 23 Best Construction Management Associate Degree programs by Best Accredited Colleges. The ranking comes at an important time for both Vermont and the nation: Construction continues its upward jobs trend. In March 2022, the US Bureau of Labor Statistics shared a report that showed the ninth-straight…

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Elisabeth Hoehn

  • The VAST program opened many doors
  • I love to fly now
  • I knew very little about planes when I started this program
Read full profile

Jamie Heiam

  • I’m hooked on flying
  • I can rebuild a damaged airplane
  • I can’t wait to join the U.S. Forest Service
Read full profile

Get Started!

We would love to meet you and personally introduce you to the Vermont Tech community.