Phase
I - Online distance-learning. Cost
is $1,500 (non-refundable). Various modules of our course are presented
online, such as Weather Theory, Non-Graphic Weather, Graphic weather,
Aeronautical Information Manual, Regulations, and Aircraft Performance,
Aircraft Limitations and Systems.
Requires: Internet access, a user ID and password (issued
after payment), 4.x or higher web browser, a variety of browser
plugins which are free and easily downloadable. Optional are CD/DVD
drives. Successful completion of Phase I is a prerequisite to enter
the Phase II (residency) course. Plan on a minimum of 3-4 months
to complete the online modules and online examinations (excluding
study time for the ADX test). This phase will be accessible
on a password-protected realm of our web site. Once Phase I is accessed,
students will have 4 months of access, which can be extended on
a monthly basis for $400 per month; however, the assignments must
be satisfactorily completed by the assigned due dates. Overdue
assignments will not be accepted. Online access extentions
are subject to instructor approval. You may postpone your Phase
II start date ONLY ONE TIME, if needed. Evidence
of cheating or receiving help from others or giving out your individual
ID and password to others will result in immediate dismissal from
the course - no refund. If
you continually ignore directions provided by the instructor, after
previous warnings, then
student will be terminated from the course - no refund.
Phase
II - Residency, following
successful completion of Phase I. Cost
is $1,300. 2010 fee includes Practical
examination fee. Retake fee $200.00, if needed. Exam is in-house.
2011 FAA Practical examination fee: ($200.00). Practical exam RETEST,
if required ($200.00). The
balance ($1,300) is due 30 days prior to the first day of class
& can be paid with cash, bank check, company check, money order,
Master Card, Visa, or Travelers Checks.
(no personal checks.)
Duration:
5 days, 8 clock hours per day;
8:00am - 5:00pm with a lunch hour. Occasionally, computer labs may
be conducted in the large classroom toward the end of the day. The
5-day period will consist primarily of flight planning, regulations
review and testing, Aircraft Systems/limitations review and testing.
The 5-day residency portion will begin on a Wednesday, and continue
through the following Tuesday (weekdays only). Class is not
held during the weekends.
Instructor: Jordan Grauer
Maximum class size: 25.
Minimum class size: 1 student.
- Be prepared to stay 1-3 days following the last class day due
to the scheduling of practical examinations.
-
International students are welcome.
Q:
I'm considering the Distance Learning course, but I'm unsure and
I don't want to send any money right now. What should I do?
A:
1st: Don't send any
money. 2nd: Pass
the ADX test, then contact us for further details, questions, etc.
The reason is this - you DO NOT want to enroll in this class without
being 100% sure that you can study and pass the ADX on your own,
since it is a prerequisite. Use our free study materials, practice
tests, question lists, etc. to study along with a Gleim ATP Test
Prep book to see if you can really handle the workload without an
instructor. It won't cost you any money, then you can decide if
the online course is appropriate for you or perhaps any of the longer
duration courses we have.
Q:
How much online study time will I require prior to attending
the Phase II Residency portion?
A:
A minimum of 3-4 months to possibly 4-5 months depending on the
number of hours per day you can commit to self-disciplined study
and interactive practice examples, and assignments.
Q:
Why so long?
A:
We are not a diploma mill. You will be required to work hard, study,
and turn in assignments, including tests by a due date. You will
be required to correct all homework errors, if applicable. Your
goal should be to not only pass our course and learn the material,
BUT ALSO, be prepared
for an interview and airline initial training. We had 2 airlines
here (August '06) in the past 10 days. Not once did they ask our
interviewees to look up all the answers or guess at 3 possible choices
- life doesn't work that way. Neither do we. Sheffield wants you
to get a job and keep it! Any doubts? Visit our testimonials.
Q:
What happens if I miss a due date for completing a course?
A:
You are no longer eligible to arrive for your scheduled Phase 2
residency start date. You must postpone to the next scheduled start
date. After a subsequent overdue course, then you will be terminated
from the program. It may be harsh, but it would be a farce to expect
you to rush through all the material, then arrive at Sheffield with
no review time - no possible way to pass here in 5 days.
Q:
What if I cannot have all assignments completed by the final due
date (1 week prior to the class Phase II start date)?
A:
See the answer above. The key is to not fall behind. Procrastination
will lead to failure. See the timeline below. If you have any doubts,
give yourself the extra months to do this, and assume this time
AFTER you've already passed the ADX.
Q:
Do you have any weekend classes or night classes?
A:
No, the course is overseen by the FAA; therefore, we want
to be assured of adequate oversight. Attending weekend classes is
risky for students in case the course operator encounters "issues."
That does not occur at Sheffield.
Q:
Are your exams open-book and readily visible online prior to taking
the course?
A:
No, although we've posted hundreds of questions online for FAA ADX
test study which provide a crude idea of the topics and questions
you may encounter. Our material is more real-life based and not
standardized. Also, responsible airline hiring
managers who are aware of open-book, cheat-if-you'd-like
type of exams are not interested in hiring you. Sheffield would
like to educate you AND assist with your job placement and job RETENTION.
Q:
Must I pass any other FAA Knowledge exams (other than the ADX) prior
to taking the online course? I do not have experience.
A:
No. It is an utter waste of time, money, and resources to pass one
memory exercise because some course operator wants to sell you his/her
Test Prep materials.
Q:
I've read a lot about your DL+5 dispatch program on your web and
truly it is quite interesting. However, how can I write the ADX
test (since it is a prerequisite) outside the U.S.A. before my admittance
into Phase 1.
A:
It is highly recommended to not work on the ADX material at the
same time as the Phase I online material because our material
is immense. If you cannot take the ADX in your country (if non-U.S.),
I understand, but you’ll need to carefully judge how to budget
your study time for both the ADX test and our online lessons. You
can always take the ADX test at Sheffield on the first day of your
Phase II (residency) portion, but if you’ve neglected the
Sheffield lessons during the recent weeks prior to your arrival
and have focused the majority of your study time on the ADX test,
then our Phase II course may likely be too difficult for you or
you may be behind when you arrive.
Q:
When I receive my User ID and password, will I be able to access
the online lessons (Courses 101-110 below) or do I still have to
wait for the posted dates that are on the Matrix? For instance,
if I want to participate in the Dec 501 class must I have the assignments
in by those dates?
A:
You can complete the lessons (Courses 101-110 below) any time
prior to the DUE DATES. The Matrix lists the LATEST due
dates for each Course; i.e. Course 101 is due LATEST by Nov.
10 for the 501 class. You can certainly complete a course before
it's due date. - PLEASE DO SO!! You must complete one course at
a time and in order.
Q:
If I'm buying 4 months of online access, but the Residency class
begins 6 months from now, what should I do?
A:
You can begin the online portion immediately if you'd prefer or
wait until 4 months prior to the Residency start date to gain online
access and begin. The advantage of starting earlier is that if you
are delayed in your studies due to some unforeseeable circumstances
or due to procrastination, then you still have time to complete
the work for a $400 per month online access charge. If you complete
the online work early (within the 4 months) and have a month or
2 to spare, but have no online access anymore, there really is no
problem because you have ample opportunity to print an entire notebook
of material while online to study and review later on. PLEASE UNDERSTAND
THAT DUE DATES MUST BE MET!!! One day late will NOT be acceptable
- this snowballs into failure.
Q:
Which school is your closest competion?
A:
None. No other school does what we do. Not even remotely close.
Fortunately, most prospective students realize that hard work is
rewarded by earning the FAA Aircraft Dispatcher Certificate. Sheffield
teaches critical thinking and application; requirements for this
profession.
Q:
My husband and I attended a quickie school that only required a
few days of work and we're both now having problems adjusting to
computer flight planning and task management in general. We just
left our jobs. Can I attend your school for refresher?
A:
You can enroll in any of our courses, but it won't be "refresher"
- it will be learning. The term "refresher" does not pertain
to graduates of other schools who attend the Sheffield courses.
[note: it bears repeating that hard work typically results in a
payoff for Sheffield graduates - a certificate, a career and an
education. Our graduates don't look elsewhere for an education.
Tuition is supposed to cover that.]
(Note:
They both had aviation experience PRIOR to their "quickie"
course and likely did not actually "leave" their jobs
- just to give you an idea of a truly pathetic example of the poor
education they both received, and....more.)
Q:
I already know everything about aviation so I'd like to just sign
up and knock out these lessons in a week or two, while studying
for the ADX at the same time. (we get this question 1-2 times a
week.)
A:
Don't bother - you will not succeed at Sheffield School.
Q:
My aviation background is very little or insignificant, but I do
not procrastinate, I read and follow directions and instructions
very well, and am motivated to learn.
A:
Please apply after passing the ADX test - you are the type of student
Sheffield School desires and who the airlines prefer to employ.
Q:
When I receive my User ID and password, will I be able to access
the online lessons (Courses 101-110) or do I still have to wait
for the posted dates that are on the MATRIX?
A:
You can complete the lessons in order (Courses 101-110 above) any
time prior to the DUE DATES.The Matrix lists the due dates
for each Course. You can certainly complete a course before it's
due date.
Q:
What seems to be the biggest problem for students taking the online
course?
A:
A combination of not following instructions and procrastination.
For example, once the Phase I tuition is paid, an email is sent
with instructions and links, and a directive to "Reply via
email that you received this email", but many students do not
follow that direction. They are reminded a week or 10 days later,
some need an additional reminder, but by then they are already 2-3
weeks behind.
Q:
What seems to be the next biggest problem for students taking the
online course?
A:
Not reading what was just written above or not believing it.
Q:
Anything else?
A:
Yes. Believing that the ADX test is Phase I or that the ADX exam
can be studied for while taking our Phase I online material concurrently.
Sheffield's Phase I online material is not pure ADX study material.
It could certainly help anyone studying for the ADX test, but is
more demanding on it's own and should be commenced once the ADX
is already passed.
Q:
STILL anything else?
A:
Yes. Believing that this is some "click through the pretty
flash files" type of course resulting in some lame "print
out your certificate" set of instructions at the end. There
are a variety of training methods used including interactive examples
and other tasks, but a large amount of READING is required, followed
by homework and other assignments, AND all must be REVIEWED and
understood prior to your arrival at Sheffield.
Q:
What is a good way to get terminated from the course and lose all
my money?
A:
Do not follow my instructions...repeatedly. Some students like to
just submit incomplete work, nameless work, late work, assignments
out of order.
It is almost approaching arrogance at times. Many simply cannot
read. Some enjoy resubmitting homework with the same incorrect answer.
One person submitted no assignments for a month after gaining access
to the online modules (typical procrastinator), then sent his first
email "Well, I'm ready to take the End of Course test for Course
105." He never could understand from me that Course 101 comes
first, then Course 102, etc..If you do not completely understand
an early course, then you will not understand a latter course -
it kind of goes in order for a reason. There is a Matrix below that
basically indicates due dates in a certain order. It becomes difficult
to help online students who have legitimate technical questions
because I need to send Johnny Clueless another email explaining
that the assignments are located when you click the button named...Assignments.
Q:
Aren't you afraid to scare away prospective students with that last
answer?
A:
No. Two reasons: First, We only want quality people
taking these online modules. Sheffield has a solid 60-year reputation
- we do not need to lure in business - we're doing fine. We only
prefer students who want to learn, can READ, and can FOLLOW DIRECTIONS.
Is experience required? No, we could not care less - one guy referenced
above had an ATP with other flight certificates, but simply could
not read, apply, or follow simple directions. Then we've had others
with no aviation experience fly through the online courses and score
VERY high in the residency portion thereafter. 2nd reason:
do you really think the mentally lazy, non-followers of instruction
actually read all these questions and answers. Hopefully they did
and will never contact Sheffield for training, but ... you know
how it goes.
I'll likely get 1-2 emails this week: "Well, I know I haven't
done anything for the past 5 weeks, but I'm going to get this all
finished this week and be there next week!" You're going to
take 5 days to do up to 3-4 months of work? Sure you are. .....Happens
all the time.
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