I am an Air Traffic Controller. Two weeks from today the

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UPDATE June 11 #2

I will update the top of this post with a direct link to the application once it goes live on June 24.

In the meantime, you can go ahead and make an account on USA Jobs and create your resume. The FAA highly encourages applicants to use the resume builder on the site rather than upload your own.

UPDATE June 11

I’m beginning to work through my DMs in the order I got them. I will get to all of you eventually.

I’m getting a lot of questions about resumes and how to stand out. So the FAA only uses the resumes to verify eligibility. Don’t stress about it. There isn’t a human being parsing through resumes looking for higher quality candidates. The biggest determining factor on if you get a job offer or not will be your AT-SA score. So focus on that.

Also, the FAA highly recommends using the resume builder on usajobs.gov.

UPDATE 4

I know I’ve got a ton of you who sent me DMs hours ago and are still waiting for a response. I absolutely will get to each and every one of you as soon as I can.

UPDATE 3

You will apply HERE. Search for job series 2152 and look for “Air Traffic Control Specialist Trainee”.

UPDATE 2

AT-SA information

Academy information

Medical information

UPDATE: To everyone sending me DMs, I WILL respond to all of you. I’m working through the comments first, and responding to DMs as I can in the order I got them. Hang tight!

Proof

I’ve been doing AMA’s for these “off the street” hiring announcements since 2018. Since they always gain a lot of interest, I’m back for another one. I’ve heard back from hundreds of people over the past few years who saw my posts, applied, and are now air traffic controllers. Hopefully this post can reach someone else who might be looking for a really cool job.

Check out my previous AMAs for tons of info:

2018

2019

2020

2021

The application window will open from June 24 - June 27 for all eligible U.S. citizens. Eligibility requirements are as follows:

Must be a U.S. citizen

Must be registered for Selective Service, if applicable (Required for males born after 12/31/1959)

Must be age 30 or under on the closing date of the application period (with limited exceptions)

Must have either three years of general work experience or four years of education leading to a bachelor’s degree, or a combination of both

Must speak English clearly enough to be understood over communications equipment

MEDICAL REQUIREMENTS

I highly recommend checking out the FAA’s info on their site HERE. It includes instructions on how to apply.

Let’s start with the difficult stuff:

The hiring process is incredibly arduous. After applying, you will have to wait for the FAA to process all applications, determine eligibility, and then reach out to you to schedule the AT-SA. This is basically an air traffic aptitude test. The testing window usually lasts weeks-months for everyone to get tested. Your score will place you into one of several “bands”, the top of which being “Best Qualified.” In previous bids, essentially only those in the Best Qualified band get an offer letter.

If you receive and accept an offer letter (called a Tentative Offer Letter, or TOL) you will then have to pass medical, background, and psychological evaluations. If you do, you will receive a final offer letter (FOL) and be scheduled to attend the FAA Academy in OKC (paid).

Depending on which track you are assigned (Terminal or En Route), you will be at the academy for 3-4 months. You will have to pass your evaluations at the end in order to continue on to your facility. There is a 99% chance you will have to relocate. Your class will get a list of available facilities to choose from based solely on national staffing needs. If you fail your evaluations, your position will be terminated. Once at your facility, on the job training typically lasts anywhere from 1-3 years. You will receive raises as you progress through training.

All that being said:

This is an incredibly rewarding career. The median pay for air traffic controllers in 2021 was $138,556. We receive extremely competitive benefits and leave, and won’t work a day past 56 (mandatory retirement, with a pension). We also get 3 months of paid parental leave. Most controllers would tell you they can’t imagine doing anything else. Speaking for myself, when I’m not on position working traffic I’m either playing Xbox, spikeball, volleyball, resting, etc. Enjoying yourself at work is actively encouraged, as taking down time in between working traffic is paramount for safety. Some controllers will read this and scoff, and rightfully so as not all facilities are well-staffed and working conditions can vary greatly. But overall, it’s hard to find a controller who wouldn’t tell you this is the best job in the world.

Please ask away in the comments and/or my DMs. I always respond to everyone eventually. Good luck!

Comments: 3365 • Responses: 74 • Date: 2022-06-10 14:42:51 UTCsource

FlightOfTheShortGuy5325 karma2022-06-10 15:49:05 UTC

Anyone on the fence about this career and want to hear from someone who saw OPs post back in 2019 and is now a controller? Well that’s who I am. I had a degree in something completely unrelated and it was looking like I wasn’t gonna land a career in that field. Then I see OPs post, applied and made it through all pre-employment screenings and testing, and then made it through the academy training and now I’m an ATC at an airport.

I love this job. The actual work is great, the work environment with coworkers is fun, and I get a lot of breaks. With how many breaks you get, you end up getting paid 6 figures for really only 25ish hours of work. The other 15 (in a 40 hour work week) are on break. Just this past work week alone I watched 2 different movies on my breaks and a Bunch of TV shows. But also note that every facility is different depending on staffing.

The retirement is great and I have realized that I will likely retire a solid 10+ years before my friends.

I would say most my coworkers are not stressed at all in their day to day lives and have a lot of other endeavors in their time away from work.

If you’re on the fence please apply! You literally have nothing to lose.

I am an Air Traffic Controller. Two weeks from today the FAA will be hiring more controllers. This is a 6 figure job that does not require a college degree. AMA.