Post-Academy Housing Question

[denver0739]

I bet it'll get even wilder ?

Especially with the next government shutdown forecast in September.

correction: at the end of September

 

[XM]

Especially with the next government shutdown forecast in September

View attachment 3727

Seriously though! I thought I was the only one that believed it! ?

 

[Sassyquatch]

In a previous post, I stated that I have an excel spreadsheet with the en route facilities and in a separate workbook, our prioritized list of where we'd want to live, with average apartment and buying a home costs listed to help us plan and know what to expect early on. I, like most everyone in the ALLSRCE-20 bid, received the ATSA email last week, and I'm scheduled to take it Thursday and am honestly looking forward to it. Been practicing with the reviewed softwares on this website and I believe it's helped me. Thank you for sharing! I greatly appreciate it!

So I've applied to 3 bids and got in on the 2019 bid and I've always liked to read these kind of posts because I have thought about the possibilities of moving to a different city and I wouldn't know where to start and what to do. Reading through these, I have a better understanding and a better plan for when that time comes (even though I'm still unsure of how I'm actually going to make the move).
The chances of getting en route are high and I thought this whole time I would be getting en route (just from looking at the odds) and I even did some research of housing prices around a couple of centers. Turns out I got terminal, which I wanted but still slightly surprised. I think it's great that you're looking into all this already-if you have the time for it then go for it. Just realize that while all this time you plan looking for places to stay around the 22 en route facilities, there's still a possibility you get terminal and all that research goes down the drain. OR it could also take 5+ years to finally get that TOL. Good luck!

 

[XM]

So I've applied to 3 bids and got in on the 2019 bid and I've always liked to read these kind of posts because I have thought about the possibilities of moving to a different city and I wouldn't know where to start and what to do. Reading through these, I have a better understanding and a better plan for when that time comes (even though I'm still unsure of how I'm actually going to make the move).
The chances of getting en route are high and I thought this whole time I would be getting en route (just from looking at the odds) and I even did some research of housing prices around a couple of centers. Turns out I got terminal, which I wanted but still slightly surprised. I think it's great that you're looking into all this already-if you have the time for it then go for it. Just realize that while all this time you plan looking for places to stay around the 22 en route facilities, there's still a possibility you get terminal and all that research goes down the drain. OR it could also take 5+ years to finally get that TOL. Good luck!

Thank you! These are very good words! I really want enroute personally but if I get a TOL for terminal then I don't mind, because at least I got a TOL. Speaking of which, has anyone ever asked their HR rep to switch their tracks and actually gotten it? Just curious, lol

In the case I don't get En Route, I do have a list of states we'd be okay living in as a backup for a terminal position. I thought the odds were higher for terminal but I could've been looking at old documentation; if I recall correctly, it said something like 1/3 will get En route and the other 2/3 will get terminal or TRACON. Let me see if I can find that document too.

Thanks for wishing me luck! And congratulations on getting in! 3rd times the charm!!

 

[Sassyquatch]

Thank you! These are very good words! I really want enroute personally but if I get a TOL for terminal then I don't mind, because at least I got a TOL. Speaking of which, has anyone ever asked their HR rep to switch their tracks and actually gotten it? Just curious, lol

In the case I don't get En Route, I do have a list of states we'd be okay living in as a backup for a terminal position. I thought the odds were higher for terminal but I could've been looking at old documentation; if I recall correctly, it said something like 1/3 will get En route and the other 2/3 will get terminal or TRACON. Let me see if I can find that document too.

Thanks for wishing me luck! And congratulations on getting in! 3rd times the charm!!

More applicants get en route than terminal, I'm just not sure of the ratios. When I was looking at the academy classes a couple of months ago, I noticed there were about 3-4 en route classes starting each month and only about 1, sometimes 2 terminal classes starting each month. Not sure if things have changed since this pandemic though. And if you do get terminal, it will either be a tower or an up/down (tower & tracon combined) out of the academy. They don't offer tracon to OTS academy grads

 

[kshaky]

Thank you! These are very good words! I really want enroute personally but if I get a TOL for terminal then I don't mind, because at least I got a TOL. Speaking of which, has anyone ever asked their HR rep to switch their tracks and actually gotten it? Just curious, lol

In the case I don't get En Route, I do have a list of states we'd be okay living in as a backup for a terminal position. I thought the odds were higher for terminal but I could've been looking at old documentation; if I recall correctly, it said something like 1/3 will get En route and the other 2/3 will get terminal or TRACON. Let me see if I can find that document too.

Thanks for wishing me luck! And congratulations on getting in! 3rd times the charm!!

You could ask your HR rep for a different date which can put you on the other track. It’s harder to change to Terminal from Enroute based on anecdotal evidence and given there are I believe 3 Enroute classes for every 1 Terminal class.

Honestly, don’t think about specific locations. Assume you are going to end up exactly where you do not want to go. If you get Enroute, you may be forced to go to Alaska as recent Academy graduates have. If you get Terminal, you’ll probably end up in a city like Lafayette, Louisiana or again Alaska. Try to get first in your class so you have more options to choose from, but it might not matter as they may make you go to NY or Oakland if everyone else in your class fails. In my opinion, the worst part about getting started in this career is that you have little to no option of where you spend your first 3-5 years (in some cases maybe more).

 

[spider]

Assuming you are successful through training, you will make significantly more by doing en route so if you want en route then ask for it.

By the time a terminal hire gets to a Level 12, you will already have been in the Level 12 band for years with all of the raises that come with it before they enter at the bottom. Now of course there are advantages to terminal as well, especially if you really want to eventually live somewhere that isn't where a center is.

 

[GulfBravoPapa]

Assuming you are successful through training, you will make significantly more by doing en route so if you want en route then ask for it.

By the time a terminal hire gets to a Level 12, you will already have been in the Level 12 band for years with all of the raises that come with it before they enter at the bottom. Now of course there are advantages to terminal as well, especially if you really want to eventually live somewhere that isn't where a center is.

Your point is still valid but not all enroute facilities are level 12s. Non the less still higher than starting terminal facilities.

 

[XM]

You could ask your HR rep for a different date which can put you on the other track. It’s harder to change to Terminal from Enroute based on anecdotal evidence and given there are I believe 3 Enroute classes for every 1 Terminal class.

Honestly, don’t think about specific locations. Assume you are going to end up exactly where you do not want to go. If you get Enroute, you may be forced to go to Alaska as recent Academy graduates have. If you get Terminal, you’ll probably end up in a city like Lafayette, Louisiana or again Alaska. Try to get first in your class so you have more options to choose from, but it might not matter as they may make you go to NY or Oakland if everyone else in your class fails. In my opinion, the worst part about getting started in this career is that you have little to no option of where you spend your first 3-5 years (in some cases maybe more).

Wow, I didn't even think it was truly possible unless you knew someone, lol. I'd love to have En Route because it keeps me close to a big city so that there are things to do, but still decently far away enough that you don't always have to live IN the city and can enjoy some peace outside. I grew up in a town of 80 people, and 45 minutes to the closest grocery store, so living in the middle of nowhere is not an issue for me at all. I have decided that if it's in my power, not to go to Oakland or NY, haha, but it's wherever I get sent. Thank you!

Assuming you are successful through training, you will make significantly more by doing en route so if you want en route then ask for it.

By the time a terminal hire gets to a Level 12, you will already have been in the Level 12 band for years with all of the raises that come with it before they enter at the bottom. Now of course there are advantages to terminal as well, especially if you really want to eventually live somewhere that isn't where a center is.

Your point is still valid but not all enroute facilities are level 12s. Non the less still higher than starting terminal facilities.

These are true. I like the fact En Route keeps you relatively close to a large city as stated in my response to kshaky, but away enough that you can enjoy some peace when you walk outside (referring to the noise pollution from the city). Thank you for the info! All of these responses have been seriously helpful in increasing my ever expanding knowledge for this career.