My present career as an air traffic controller started in 2008, when I took my first tower tour. I had earned my private pilot certificate earlier that year and wanted to meet the faces behind the voices I kept hearing. The two gentlemen I met had lengthy careers in the FAA, which included Flight Service and Air Traffic Control. They were immensely helpful with the questions I had. They had opposite personalities, yet sounded remarkably similar; I will never forget those guys.
Later in 2008, I graduated college, with a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration. It was not the best of times: I had debt, I had dreams and I needed a career. Early in 2009, after applying for numerous jobs, I landed a teaching position at the local high school. Apparently, my luck was changing because I discovered the FAA was accepting controller applicants “off the street.” I applied and about three months later, I was invited to take the FAA’s aptitude test.
