Claire,
Welcome to the forums, to answer your first question regarding CFI pay, we average at $25.50/flight hour. All this information is readily available on the ATP website. I reference this near the end of my reply as a concern for your further questions about paying bills etc.
Being a flight instructor is a lot of responsibility, you will need to retain a professional attitude and be self-driven daily to ensure you’re providing the best instruction to the student’s integrity. There will be times that you need to breathe and rest, it’s your responsibility to ensure that every flight is being conducted in a safe environment, but also in the student’s best interest. Yes…you can instruct outside of ATP, but not all of my friends who instruct elsewhere are happy because “of the pay.” In fact, they don’t have the opportunities as those that instruct at ATP. If you find yourself as an instructor for ATP, you are given a lot of opportunities to get tuition reimbursement and earn a bit more than the “average” CFI; information like this can be found right on ATP’s website or click here. For example, SkyWest is currently doing a $17,500 tuition reimbursement once you hit 500 hours TT as an instructor at ATP, they pay $17.50 on top of ATP per flight hour which practically ‘doubles’ your pay as an instructor at ATP. For the concern of not being able to make payments, by putting in the work, looking forward and trusting the process you will see the rewards. I highly recommend taking a look at the ATP partnerships that exist, our admin team does a fantastic job at maintaining our best interest as ATP alumni.
I’ve seen an average of 70 hours per month, I’ve also seen 90 - 100 hours plus a month depending on how much is desired as a CFI at ATP. A lot of instructors don’t like to fly on the weekends, and it hurts their hours…they’re removing potentially 8 days from their flying potential…it adds up. I am a full-time instructor, I desire to fly 7 days a week, if possible. I also take adequate time to myself to recover and prepare for upcoming lessons. It is doable, I’ve seen around 500 hours of dual instruction in 2021 since hiring at ATP in the late spring.
Happy Holidays!
Brady