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How to Become a Flight Attendant with No Experience

Jocelyn a Flight attendant training graduate at The Travel Academy on the drink cart in a plane
Jocelyn a flight attendant training graduate at The Travel Academy.

Are you excited by the chance to travel the world? You aren’t alone. Average flight attendant applications for the past 10 years are estimated to be over 1,000,000 per year.  You need an advantage to ge hired.

Working as a flight attendant presents many opportunities to travel the world for free, and in overnight cases, get free hotel and meals.  Build lasting relationships and develop valuable client service and life-saving skills. Use our handy guide below to learn what you’ll need to do to start your flight attendant career.

Yes, Training Matters!  Every day, hiring managers can choose between those who are trained and those who are not.  Guess who gets the interview?

TTA provides many advantages to landing your dream job and getting hired fast.  Airlines are actively recruiting out of our school, which saves you time and gets your resume in front of those who make the hiring decisions.

  1. Learn the Requirements
  2. Assess Your Skills
  3. When You Have No Experience
  4. Search for jobs
  5. Get the job offer
  6. Complete employer certification
  7. Get Certificate of Demonstrated Proficiency
  8. Flight Attendant FAQ

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Steps to Take to be a Flight Attendant

Flight attendant jobs are one of the highest demand jobs a person can apply to. There are hundreds of bits of information and steps in the hiring process, therefore, it is best to have the training and a guide to help you successfully gain the experience and get through the hiring process to land your dream job.

Thinking about doing it on your own? It’s difficult and can take a long time.

  • Airlines can take 3-6 months to get through the hiring process, that’s if your resume makes it through the first cut.
  • Intense Competition. We estimate there are 1 – 1.5 million flight attendant applications for 5,000 – 10,000 jobs.
  • Get Hired Fast! Our school provides a fast track program where you can obtain training and job offers in just weeks!
  • Our best students obtain multiple job offers before graduation

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Learn the Requirements

Some flight attendant requirements are universal. These include:

  • Are you at least 18 years of age?
  • Flight attendants spend a lot of time on their feet – are you able to stand for long periods of time?
  • Do you have any visible tattoos or piercings beyond 1 earring per ear lobe?
  • Can you pass criminal background and pre-employment drug tests?
  • Do you have, or can you get a United States passport? (for international flights)
  • Do you have a high school diploma, or GED?

Keep in mind that each airline has its own set of guidelines. If you have your heart set on a specific airline, look up their job postings or careers page to find specifics on that carrier. Learn out more about flight attendant qualifications here.

Assess Your Personal Skills and Experience

Kacie a graduate from the Travel Academy standing in an airplane from a major airline

Do you have flight attendant training or experience?

  • Airlines hire those with flight attendant training or experience first.
  • Airlines prefer to hire people who have lived a travel lifestyle.
  • Our school provides the training you need to get hired and offers crew quarter accommodations to simulate life on the road.

Training, age, experience, maturity, personality, education, location and foreign language skills are all factors in the hiring decision.

No experience? Complete our Flight Attendant Training Program!

If you don’t have any prior experience, then a flight attendant training program can help you get a foot in the door.

Flight attendants do so much more than just serving food and beverage. A lot can happen in the air and you want to be prepared to deal with anything that may come up. You need to know flight regulations, job responsibilities and airline standards.

Flight attendants are trained to handle emergencies and keep passengers safe. You need to be skilled in first aid, security, evacuation methods, and aircraft safety procedures.

Having training or experience with a flight attendant training school gives you a serious advantage over your competition and shows airlines that you’re committed to your career path.

Search and Apply for Flight Attendant Jobs

This step may not be as easy as it sounds. Thousands of applicants without training never land an interview with an airline. Moreover, once you enter the interviewing process, the competition is fierce. That is why you must be completely prepared for your interview. Our school specializes in training you for interviews and airlines will often interview students while they’re still in class.

Being skilled at training isn’t the only thing to consider when you’re applying for work. It’s just as important to know how to make a positive impression on your potential employer during the interview process. Competition is tough and you must know everything from the proper way to dress for the job to the best way to answer hard interview questions.

The Application Process

  • Delta receives 270,000 applications for only 2,000 positions, only the most qualified candidates even make it to an in-person interview.
  • Many airlines use a computer screening process to reject a large number of candidates solely based on their résumé.
  • The Travel Academy provides the secrets to help you get past the computer screening process. We shortcut the hiring process from months to just weeks, many of our students are interviewed while they are still in class and receive multiple job offers.

The application process for most airlines is intense. It can take 1-2 hours to complete a single application and questions may feel confusing or intimidating. Always provide a cover letter and résumé with your application. Since airlines receive thousands of applications, cover letters, and résumés, yours really needs to stand out.

Interviewing

If you are one of the lucky ones to get a call for an interview, you will arrive and likely find many people in front of you and a new group waiting to interview when you leave.

Experienced airline representatives interview thousands of people and has probably decided if you’ll be offered a position in the first 5 minutes. They look at your professionalism, manners (airlines are “old school”), how you talk, how you sit, eye contact…everything is judged.

The Travel Academy runs you through multiple practice interviews to help you master the in-person interview. This gives you real world practice, that will help you get hired fast.

Getting the Offer

Congratulations! Your hard work paid off and you’ve been hired by an airline!

Once you pass the pre-employment screening, the airline will require you to go through orientation and be trained on their own aircraft under their own FAA approved policies.

Many first-time flight attendants aren’t aware that, when you’re hired with an airline, the offer may be temporary until permanent. It is still possible to be fired at this stage. About 30% to 50% of new flight attendants never make it on an airplane. The most common reasons are tardiness, attitude, lack of flight attendant training or aircraft knowledge.

Most airlines have a probationary period where they test your skills and training.

Complete Airline Orientation & Aircraft Familiarization

All airlines require that new hires complete an orientation training program. In addition, flight attendants must complete orientation on each specific aircraft for the airline, very few airlines have the same aircraft.

Get Certificate of Demonstrated Proficiency

After orientation, crew members working on a plane with more than 20 seats need an FAA issued Certificate of Demonstrated Proficiency. Flight attendants receive this certificate from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).

Flight Attendant Benefits

 

The flight attendant benefits are one of the top reasons why people choose this type of job.  Specific benefits are different for each airline and may be different depending on how long a flight attendant has worked for their airline.  The most popular benefit for flight attendants is just the job itself.  Many flight attendants use their layover time between flights to explore a new city or country.  There are times when a flight attendant job allows for a several day layover, which provides plenty of time to watch the sun rise or set over the ocean, explore historical places, or just sit and sip a cup of coffee on a cobblestone sidewalk.

 

Other benefits include:

  • Your job takes you to other cities – can explore on overnight trips
  • Family and sometimes friends can fly for free
  • Do not need a college degree
  • Many advancement opportunities
  • Schedule can be flexible
  • Ability to pickup extra flights to increase hours
  • Opportunity to meet new people
  • Per Diem – extra compensation to cover your meal costs (add: $1.70 – $2.15 per flight hour)
  • Medical, dental, and life insurance
  • 401(K) retirement plan
  • Long-term disability coverage
  • Performance-based bonuses
  • Paid vacation and holidays
  • Discounts on cruises, car rentals, hotels, and other hospitality services

Apply Online or give us a call at 952-854-7161 and see for yourself how much of a difference we can make in your career and help you realize your greater potential!

Flight Attendant Frequently Asked Questions

How long does it take to become a flight attendant?

It depends. The flight attendant training course takes 10 weeks to complete. Most students have already begun interviewing with airlines by the time they graduate and some even have job offers. Each persons experience will be different so keep that in mind.

Can you become a flight attendant at 40? 50? 60?

There is no age limitation for becoming a flight attendant. In fact, airlines appreciate older applicants because they have an extensive proven work history with professional references and the maturity to handle stressful day-to-day flight operations.

Can a man become a flight attendant?

You can absolutely become a flight attendant if you are male and the number of males that are entering the industry is actually increasing. As long as you can accomplish the day-to-day functions of being a flight attendant, then your sex, gender, race, sexual orientation, etc. does not matter to airlines.

Where can I apply to become a flight attendant?

Our students have access to dozens of airline application websites. We also spend time walking you through the application process including: how to fill out the application to get past the computer screening process, how to dress for the interview and even practice interviews to give you the confidence and training you need to land a job in this highly competitive industry. This allows our students to cut the interview process from months to weeks and receive more job offers.

Why become a flight attendant? Is becoming a flight attendant worth it?

The biggest benefit of becoming a flight attendant is the ability to get paid to travel; some airlines even allow flight attendants’ families and friends to travel for free. Starting wages are $18-25 per hour depending on the airline and the specific job.

There are additional monetary benefits including performance-based bonuses, paid time-off/holidays, travel per diem for free meals, 401K retirement planning, insurance, and more depending on the airline.

Can I become a flight attendant with a DUI?

Airlines are extremely hesitant to pursue candidates with any drug or alcohol related criminal records within the last 10 years. Anyone interested in pursuing a travel industry career should attempt to get these types of criminal charges expunged before applying to airlines. Call us for additional information about a career in the travel industry with a DUI.

Is becoming a flight attendant difficult?

Yes applying on your own is difficult, Travel Academy students find the process much easier and faster with more job offers due to their training.

Statistically speaking, it is harder to get hired by Delta Airlines than it is to get admitted into Harvard University because Delta receives over 270,000 applications per year and uses strict automated screening software. It is estimated that up to 60% of flight attendants fail their initial training and are released before getting hired because of the rigorous nature of their on-boarding. Anyone interested in pursuing a flight attendant career should fully prepare themselves as much as possible and consider pursuing an education and resume tutoring before applying in order to gain a competitive advantage during the recruitment process.

How to get a job with a certain airline?

Call us to inquire about the specific airline you’d like to work for, all airlines have unique hiring requirements and we can help you get hired fast.

Graduates of the Travel Academy have successfully landed jobs at the following airlines:

  • Delta Airlines
  • United Airlines
  • American Airlines
  • Sun Country Airlines
  • Southwest Airlines
  • Frontier Airlines
  • Omni Air International
  • Norwegian Air Line
  • Caribbean Airlines
  • Hawaiian Airlines
  • Trans State Airlines
  • Emirates
  • Flight Services International
  • Air Canada
  • SkyWest Airlines
  • Envoy Air
  • Mesa Airlines
  • PSA Airlines
  • Endeavor Air
  • Compass Airlines
  • Allegiant Air
  • Republic Airways
  • GoJet Airlines
  • JetSuiteX
  • Contour Airlines
  • XOJET
  • Jetblue
  • CommutAir
  • Alaska Airlines
  • Air Wisconsin
  • Westjet
  • Spirit Airlines
  • And more!

Where can I study to become a flight attendant?

The Travel Academy specializes in flight attendant training. Next class starts soon, apply today.

What does it take to become a flight attendant?

Before an airline will hire, flight attendants need a high school diploma or an equivalent plus flight attendant training and/or work experience in customer service. Each airline has their own requirements but most applicants must be at least 18 years old, be eligible to work in the United States, have a valid passport pass a background check and drug test.

Do flight attendants make good money?

Due to the laws in the United States we cannot disclose average salaries. However, we are allowed to share that starting salaries range between $18-26 per hour depending on the airline, work history and other factors. Remember most flight attendant jobs come with free travel and other benefits.

Do you need training to be a flight attendant?

A high school diploma or equivalent is required. All flight attendants are required to obtain a certificate of demonstrated proficiency, which requires specific flight attendant training.

We hope you’ve enjoyed our guide on how to become a flight attendant! Ready to get started on your journey? Contact us today online here or call us at 952-854-7161