Camaraderie among course students.
The annual Massey University School of Aviation Open Day, to be held in Palmerston North on Saturday 16 September, offers a venue for people interested in a career in aviation to explore the study options. Prospective BAv students may also have a trial flight in a Massey Diamond training aircraft—though it pays to book early to be sure of a seat.
What follows is an introduction to the academic and training pathways.
Bachelor of Aviation
Graduates complete a unique integrated aviation university undergraduate qualification.
This qualification is intended for those planning a professional career as a pilot. Their three years will be spent covering core technical subjects such as navigation, meteorology, aerodynamics, etc, and non-technical subjects such as human factors and threat and error management.
It culminates in either a flight instructor course or aviation business management studies. Scenario-based flight training and Apple-IPads as Electronic Flight Bags are other key elements of the school’s approach to preparing students for eventual airline roles.
Students graduate with all the examination credits for an ATPL and are issued with a New Zealand CPL, and MEIR. Flight training is integrated as the practical element of the academic papers and is delivered in-house via the school’s fleet of technically advanced Diamond single engined and twin engined aircraft equipped with full digital avionics approved for Performance Based Navigation operations.
Upon graduation B.Av graduates may apply to Massey University for a place on its two-year fixed term graduate programme as Graduate Flight Instructors. This may then lead to full time instructor roles at Massey at the end of the internship. Flight training under the mentorship framework of the GFI programme is highly valued by Massey graduates with one—now an Air NZ pilot—saying,
“I found the Massey training and instructing set me up very well for this step into the airlines and I used the skills I had used in training students to use myself in a real environment.”
Other graduates find their niche as instructors with aviation training organisations in NZ and Australia where they add value by bringing aspects of their Massey training to those organisations. Still others commence work as commercial pilots in NZ or abroad.
Massey trained pilots can be found at major international airlines including Emirates, Etihad, Singapore Air, Thai Airways, Aeroflot, Cathay Pacific, Jet Star and, of course, Air NZ.
Bachelor of Aviation Management
Internships while studying have led to great aviation employment opportunities. A number of Massey’s aviation management students have relished the opportunity to enrol in an aviation ‘practicum’ paper—also known as ‘internship papers’—during their undergraduate degree.
To date students have had the opportunity to complete internship papers at Air NZ Freight, Fieldair Holdings, Aerocare, Auckland International Airport, Airbiz, Air NZ, and Christchurch International Airport, to name a few.
Massey aviation management graduate Woody Andrew, now working as an aviation consultant with AirBiz, says, “The aviation industry is interconnected and impacted by so many external influences. Therefore aviation requires immense planning along with the ability to think on your feet.”
His Bachelor of Aviation Management degree “enabled me to gain knowledge in many different areas within the aviation field, as opposed to only studying one aspect of business”. He describes Massey’s aviation management graduates as “specialist generalists whose broad knowledge is crucial in entering a dynamic and truly worldwide industry”.
Others attribute the degree as giving them a deeper insight into the management of organisations in the wider aviation industry, from how airports work to how airlines function and the differences and similarities they share.
Massey’s Aviation graduates can be found in a great variety of aviation roles in NZ and offshore, including with NZ’s international and domestic airlines; airports in New Zealand, Sydney, London, Changi and the Maldives; air navigation services such as Airways NZ ; aviation related regulatory bodies (CAA NZ etc); tourism and freight forwarding operations; fixed-based operators; aviation consultancies; and airport branding, to name but a few.
Postgraduate qualifications
Aviation professionals are increasingly adding value to their career portfolios by completing a postgraduate degree in aviation—the Master of Aviation—or taking an aviation doctoral programme (PhD). The research undertaken by Massey’s aviation faculty and postgraduate students contributes to the global body of aviation research.
Master of Aviation students may select one of two options: the Master of Aviation, Research pathway, or the Master of Aviation, Professional Practice pathway. Both require students to complete certain papers during the first part. In the second part the research pathway requires students to complete a research report, and the professional pathway requires students to complete a project which can be related to an aspect of their current industry role. This latter option is gaining increased resonance within the aviation industry.
Both pathways are available via distance learning.
The most recent PhD (Aviation) graduate was Dr Tahlia Fisher (a Massey scholar) who began her academic career in 2001 with a Bachelor of Aviation majoring in flight crew development. During her subsequent period working at Massey University training young pilots, Tahlia’s interest was sparked in matters pertaining to aviation safety which eventually led to her doctoral studies.
Tahlia is currently employed by Air NZ as a Senior Safety Specialist based at Auckland Airport. Most of her role involves conducting operational investigations and contributing to safety communication, training and education throughout the airline. She combined her career with PhD research at Massey University.
Her PhD thesis, Cleared to disconnect? A study of the interaction between airline pilots and Line Maintenance Engineers, was recognised in the Massey University 2017 Dean’s List of Exceptional Theses. Since publication Tahlia’s research has been recognised by colleagues at NASA’s Johnson Space Center and in October 2017 Tahlia will attend the 70th Annual International Air Safety Summit (IASS), Dublin.
Other areas of research expertise at Massey’s School of Aviation include aviation psychology, human factors, aviation economics, air transport and the tourism industry in the Asia-Pacific region, low cost PC based Aviation training devices, alternative fuels, and engineering for internal combustion engines.
Remotely Piloted Aircraft Systems
The School of Aviation at Massey University is actively engaged with New Zealand’s fast evolving RPAS/UAV sector by way of both research and in delivering research based three-day professional courses to commercial users of RPAS. This course is designed to educate and train RPAS users for safe operations in the aviation environment.
Massey Aviation Open Day
Massey will hold their annual Aviation Open Day on 16 September 2017.
Prospective BAv students may pre-book a trial flight in a Massey Diamond training aircraft. Limited places are available for these flights.
For more information go to:
massey.ac.nz/aviation