Learning to fly requires focus, dedication, and money. For most students, paying for flight training is a major challenge. It is important that you are serious about becoming a pilot, so you don’t waste your money and time.

This channel will help you understand the financial aid process and identify the various sources of aid that can help you pay for flight training. We will also refer to the Pay for School channel that will provide you with detailed information on certain topics.


Here are a few steps you can follow to help you search and apply for financial aid:

•	Step 1: Financial Aid Basics (Summary)
•	Step 2: Aviation Scholarships
•	Step 3: Sources of Financial Aid
•	Step 4: Applying for a scholarship

Step 1: Financial Aid Basics (Summary)
There are a variety of financial aid programs designed to help students pay for flight training at accredited flight schools. Before you start searching and applying for financial aid, it is important that you learn as much as you can about the basics of financial aid and how the financial aid process works. The more you know, the better.

Financial aid makes a higher education possible for almost every student. Its purpose is to help you and your parent(s) pay for school expenses and flight training costs. Financial aid is awarded in the form of scholarships, grants, work-study, and educational loans.

Financial aid is usually awarded to students based on financial need (aka Need-Based Aid). However, financial aid is also awarded to students based on their merit or academic achievements (aka Merit-Based Aid), which is not based on financial need. Merit-based aid is usually awarded to students based on their test scores, gender, field of study, ethnicity, membership, disability impairments, athletic or artistic talents, religious affiliation, or other achievements stated by the scholarship providers.