What Can You Do With an Aviation Meteorology Degree?

Florida Tech February 24, 2016

What can you do with an aviation meteorology degree? Join Pete as he soars through possible career opportunities for students pursuing a degree in aviation meteorology in this new installment of, “What can I do with THAT degree?”

Have a love for meteorology and aviation? Meteorology is the study of the Earth’s atmosphere, and an aviation meteorologist predicts the weather based on the systems of Earth’s atmosphere, specifically with aviation in mind.

But what can you do with an aviation meteorology degree? Well, I’ll tell you! I’m sort of the career expert around here, and I’ll explain just a bit of what you can do after graduating.

After graduating with their bachelor degrees, most students go to graduate school and earn their masters’ in meteorology, atmospheric sciences, aviation human factors, or any other related degree program. You could also earn your Ph.D. in aviation sciences. This helps you grow your background in aviation and meteorology, and you get experience under your belt through internships and research.

If you choose to take the aviation meteorology program with flight, then you earn a specialization in air traffic control. Since it’s FAA approved, you can go on to be an air traffic controller upon graduation. Air traffic controllers control the skies, facilitating many different flights. The FAA website states that air traffic controllers guide more than 87,000 flights a day! Pretty awesome, right?

Aviation weather meteorologists play an important role in helping pilots navigate the complexity of the atmosphere. They often work around the clock, making sure pilots get to their destination safely. They may analyze models and draw maps or write briefs. Some aviation weather meteorologists draw maps of the entire world, layered with turbulence intensity and levels; jet stream speed and direction; precipitation area and type; areas of high and low pressure; areas of thunderstorm potential and any current hurricanes or typhoons. All this information is taken into account when planning a flight, and it is also passed on to the pilots, so they know what to expect during the flight.

Some good advice: since the meteorology industry is so large, try out some different types of internships and see what you like. You can go into energy, forecasting and TV broadcast, government and military agencies, air traffic control or work for private companies and airlines.

Here are some more careers:
– Airline manager
– Airport manager
– Meteorologist in the private sector
– Meteorologist in the public sector
– Public policy specialist on climate change
– Atmospheric scientist
– Geoscientist
– Statistician
– Environmental scientist

Well, there you have it! This is just a bit of what you can do with an degree in aviation meteorology. Take internships and get as much training as possible, and you’re sure to have a lot of fun in your career!