Can you become a mainline pilot without a bachelor’s degree? I know that you do not need one to become a regional pilot. If you could also give me a list of things that they will look for when hiring that would be amazing! Thank you!
Hello Mathew,
While there are a couple of “mainline” (I assume you mean Major?) carriers like Atlas and Hawaiian who will hire you without a degree virtually every other Major does and those 2 prefer one. As for a list I recommend you visit the individual airline sites as all airlines have there own particular hiring criteria.
Virtually all are looking for individuals aren’t opposed to doing some work 
Adam
Hey Matthew,
You are correct to say that you do not need a degree to fly at the regionals. As for mainline, you can checkout their websites and see that it is not necessarily required.
Delta is the only one of the three that as of now still lists a bachelor’s degree as a requirement:
http://www.deltajobs.net/pilot_qualifications.htm
American does not list anything in their pilot qualification requirements:
https://aa.pilotcredentials.com/index.php?a=qualifications
United lists a 4 year degree as a preferred requirement:
https://www.united.com/web/en-US/content/company/career/pilot.aspx
A good website to check out is AirlinePilotCentral.com, there you can find a bunch of info on each airline (both mainline and regional).
Yarden
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Matthew,
While Yarden is correct that you won’t see it as a requirement at United or AA, you’d be hard pressed to find a single pilot at either without one. I was at a union meeting a few years back and actually had this conversation with a United pilot on their hiring board. He said the only reason they don’t list it as a requirement is for “exceptional cases”. What are exceptional cases? An Army Medal of Honor recipient, the CEOs nephew, situations like those. The rest of us regular folks are probably gonna need that piece of paper.
Adam
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Thank you for your help and info! I am currently 19 and a sophomore getting my bachelor’s in Business Management. I am going to transfer into a school that offers a form of degree that will be applicable such as air transportation management(or degree similar to that). My dream ever since I was little has been to work for a mainlin airline, so I am just trying to get an idea of what is the best means to do that!
Matthew,
The best means is to do what you’re doing and finish your degree. Although again there are Majors that might take a look at you without a degree you’d be seriously limiting your options.
Adam
Also my last question is getting an aeronautical science degree going to help get me hired at other major airlines and how much more beneficial is it to have that degree as opposed to just a business management degree?
Matthew,
The short answer is no. The Majors want to see a 4 yr degree but honestly it can be in basket-weaving. You have to understand the degree allows you to check the box that says yes I have a 4 yr degree and get the interview. The interview process is not going to be about perusing your resume. Depending on the airline there may be a written test, a sim evaluation, personality test and then a sit down with a panel to see who you are as a person (basically if you’re someone they’d like to spend 5-10 hrs locked in a cockpit with?). The airline industry is very small and you’d be surprised the connections you can make or break. If getting to a Major is truly your goal, train hard, be professional and become as a good pilot as you can.
I know pilots at Majors with degrees in everything from music to chemical engineering. Study something you enjoy and there’s also nothing wrong with having a Plan B.
Adam
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Hi Adam,
So the degree type doesn’t really matter? I’m a 26 year old woman with a BA in Psychology and am looking into pilot training programs for my next career and would really hate to have to get an entire second BA when I actually had a lot of crossover with course requirements (ie. math, communication, public speaking, social psych, etc) I know it’s not an BS in aviation or anything but it feels like it’s a dynamic background for the field. I was going to call Delta, American and United and ask if they would consider someone with a BA Psych trained as an airline pilot because my dream is to fly mainline as captain! Any thoughts on this and resources would be appreciated!
Olivia
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Olivia,
No need to call (but of course you can if you like). The Majors prefer a 4yr BA/BS but do not care as to the field of study whatsoever. I know pilots who literally have degrees in everything from law to classical literature and just about anything else you can imagine. The degree is simply proof of formal education ash’s your ability to start and complete a task over an extended period of time.
Adam
Olivia,
The degree top really does not matter. I have known people with all sorts of different majors. What matters is that you have a four year degree.
Chris