Hi all,
I have been following this posting with great interest, noting what you all have had to say. Essentially I'm looking at this from the same angle as BlakeB i.e. newbie wanting to do as much research upfront before deciding Yes or No on whether to enroll on the Christchurch course (or other course). I'd really love any feedback you guys might have on the following questions:
1. I talked with the Christchurch course marketing people. Asked them what is the typical wage rate for camera operators in NZ. Was told $25k rising to $45k depending on where in NZ one works. Does this equate with your work place experiences?
2. Read Bigways comments and took due note. Is it the case that there are too many students per course with an associated increase in potential accidents due to doing too much in to limited a timeframe?
3. Following on from this, as BlakeB alluded to, would one be better off doing an AFF course then paying for the additional 175+ jumps: this way one can gaurantee 1 to 1 supervision as much as possible?
4. Also, I've been talking with a guy who runs a DZ - would not serve any purpose to say where in NZ. He says he has had some Christchurch graduates on trial and did not in all honesty think they were technically adept enough to work full time in a DZ. Again I offer this comment as something I'd like feedback on-not as a direct criticism.
5. To refer to a previous post, is there a real risk of too many cooks spoiling this particular broth i.e. if the course churns out grads almost 4 times per year, can the market sustain all these new entrants? I understand Skydogs valid comments about Queenstown and Taupo - I guess I'm trying to gauge just how flexible the market is.
6. Guess I've saved the best til last - here's where I bring in the "this is what I heard" hearsay comment :) Whilst touring NZ I did a tandem on a DZ and was chatting to a (rather fetching) young lady who works in said DZ. She said - here we go! - that the tandem instructors earn serious money. In the order of thousands per weeks in peak season as the more they tandem the more they get paid. Valid statement or utter waffle - discuss :)
As said earlier, any and all replies to this are most welcome.
Regards,
Jason
