Managing the Friendly Skies
Graduates with Aviation Administration degrees work behind-the-scenes in a variety of managerial and technical positions that make the aviation industry a safe, profitable and smoothly running business. The diversity of careers ranges from troubleshooters who have a voice in day-to-day airport and airline operations to long term visionaries who plan the future.
In this career, I can:
- Plan and design airport facilities
- Manage airport operations
- Help make airports more secure
- Plan and monitor progress of aircraft en route
- Inspect aircraft accidents
- Evaluate aircraft performance
- Coordinate flight operations
- Forecast airline traffic
- Analyze budgets and financial plans
- Develop airline marketing programs
Who hires aviation administrators?
The number of people that travel by air will double over the next 10 years. To service this growth, the airlines face an increasing need for dedicated personnel. And with the necessity for expansion at most major airports, there is no shortage of demand for managers and support staff. Job opportunities are also available in general aviation with private and business aircraft. In addition, the Federal Aviation Administration will need to employ more people to keep up with this surging demand for aviation services.
Samples of national average salary ranges:
- Airline Customer Service Supervisor ……. up to $31,200
- Airport Budget Analyst ………………………. up to $35,000
- Airport Operations Supervisor…………….. $25,000-$90,000
- Commercial Major Airline Pilot …………… $23,000-$140,000
- Federal Aviation Adm. (FAA) Agent …….. $35,100-$117,700
- Manager of Aircraft Maintenance …………. up to $52,000
Source: Data from www.avjobs.com, airtravel.about.com, career.asc.ohio-state.edu,www.calcsea.org
What will I learn?
The Aviation Administration program
leading to a bachelor’s degree offers
courses in areas such as:
- Air Traffic Control
- Airline Finance
- Airline Management and Operations
- Airport Administration
- Airport Planning
- Aviation Law
- Aviation Sales
- General Aviation Management
- Safety Factors in Aviation
You will gain outstanding knowledge in this major through hands-on experience as well as small classes taught by award-winning faculty, who work closely with students to ensure their success.
Finding career success before and after graduation
Aviation Administration graduates from Cal State L.A. quickly find rewarding jobs in their fields upon graduation. Why? One reason is that Cal State L.A. students have access to a variety of internship opportunities. By the time they are seniors, many of our students have already worked as interns at airports, airlines or the FAA, which often hire them full-time immediately upon graduation.
In addition, our faculty maintain up-to-date technical skills through service as consultants with many of these organizations. Employers who hire aviation administrators also attend our annual job fairs
to recruit our students, and we maintain a strong alumni network that offers support to our graduates.
Our internship partners and hiring companies include:
- Airport Group International (AGI)
- American Airlines
- American Airports Corporation
- Ameriflight
- Boeing
- Burbank Airport
- Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)
- Federal Express
- International Lease Finance Corporation
- John Wayne Airport
- Korean Air
- Landrum and Brown
- Los Angeles World Airports (LAX, Ontario,
- Van Nuys, Palmdale)
- Northrop Grummon
- Polar Air
- Ricondo and Associates
- Southern California Association of Governments
- TAESA Airlines
- Trans World Airlines
- United Airlines
- United Parcel Service
