THE FIRST STEP IN BECOMING A FLIGHT ATTENDANT
Like anything you have ever desperately wanted in life, you need to take a step-by-step approach to even begin making it happen.
You might think I'm going to start by saying that you should open a newspaper to the Employment section, or jump on the Internet and Google potential employers.
However, while that is certainly helpful in seeing which airlines are currently employing, it might prove very frustrating when you begin the application process to find out that you can't proceed any further until you have provided them certain things.
In Australia, for example, there are a minimum of three things you will need almost every time before you can proceed beyond the Name and Address stage of you airline application. What are these three things?
First, you need your Senior First Aid Certificate, secondly you will need your Responsible Service of Alcohol Certificate, and thirdly you will need your Passport.
GETTING YOUR SENIOR FIRST AID CERTIFICATE
Your Senior First Aid Certificate is good to have anyway, not least because one of your own family might need your skills one day to stay alive!
The other good news about this Certificate is that it can be obtained in just two days.
There are a few agencies in Australia that provide this service. If you're in another country, simply use Google to find them. Since many different First Aid courses are available, make sure you join the right one, or the airline you are applying for won't even recognise it!
In Australia, here are three suggestions:
St John Ambulance
http://www.stjohn.org.au/
As of the day I am writing this, they have renamed their Senior First Aid course as Applied First Aid. It is a two-day course and currently costs $199. It meets the National Training Requirements, and you can do it in every State and Territory in Australia - just follow the easy links on their website.
Australian Red Cross
http://www.redcross.org.au/
Their course is described the following way: "This is an online version of Red Cross’ highly regarded Senior First Aid (Workplace L2) course, and provides the fundamental principles, knowledge and skills to enable the first aider to provide emergency care for injuries and illnesses in the home or the workplace. The course content is completed online in the student’s own time, followed by an 8 hour practical skills instruction and assessment session at a Red Cross location with a certified Red Cross First Aid Trainer. On successful completion of this course participants will be issued with a Statement of Attainment for the nationally recognised unit of competency from the Health Training Package, HLTFA301B – Apply First Aid." The course costs $150.
Royal Life Saving WA
http://www.lifesavingwa.com.au/
"The Senior First Aid training program teaches the essential skills required to administer first aid to a victim of illness or injury until the arrival of professional medical help. This Senior First Aid (HLTFA301B) training course from Royal Life Saving meets the Level 2 - Workplace First Aid standard as determined by WorkSafe (Western Australia) and HLTFA301B - Apply first aid. The RLSSA Senior First Aid certificate is valid for three (3) years." This course costs $155 (GST free).
There are many other institutions offering this Certificate or similar, located everywhere in Australia. Just remember, you almost always need this Certificate before you can continue your Flight Attendant application, because many applications require a Course reference number and Course expiry date as proof of obtainment.
GETTING YOU RESPONSIBLE SERVICE OF ALCOHOL CERTIFICATE
Because you will be serving alcohol, albeit somewhere between earth and the moon, you are still required to possess a Responsible Service of Alcohol Certificate. These are cheaper and much more easily obtainable than the Senior First Aid Certificate, and is mostly completed online.
I could provide a few suggestions here, but it really is unnecessary as this Course is so easily completed, and so widely available, that I am going to suggest you simply Google a search result in your State or country and go from there. However here is one suggestion, just to give you some idea of what to expect:
Australian Hotel Association Western Australia
Online RSA Training $65
New to Online Training? - Steps to Complete
There are many other institutions offering this Certificate or similar, located everywhere in Australia. Just remember, you almost always need this Certificate before you can continue your Flight Attendant application, because many applications require a Course reference number and Course expiry date as proof of obtainment.
GETTING YOU RESPONSIBLE SERVICE OF ALCOHOL CERTIFICATE
Because you will be serving alcohol, albeit somewhere between earth and the moon, you are still required to possess a Responsible Service of Alcohol Certificate. These are cheaper and much more easily obtainable than the Senior First Aid Certificate, and is mostly completed online.
I could provide a few suggestions here, but it really is unnecessary as this Course is so easily completed, and so widely available, that I am going to suggest you simply Google a search result in your State or country and go from there. However here is one suggestion, just to give you some idea of what to expect:
Australian Hotel Association Western Australia
Online RSA Training $65
New to Online Training? - Steps to Complete
- Step One - Select one of the responsible service of alcohol courses below and click the enrol button
- Step Two - Register your details (an e-mail will be sent to you with your username and password)
- Step Three - Login with username and password
- Step Four - Read and understand course content and complete assessments as required
- Step Five - Process payment online (credit card or PAYPAL)
- Your RSA Certificate will be e-mailed to you upon successful completion of assessments and receipt of payment (an additional hard copy RSA certificate can be purchased for $15 - this option appears in the final payment stage)
GETTING YOUR PASSPORT
Getting your Passport is easy and only requires an application form, a fee, and an approved photo where you cannot (at least in Australia) show your teeth - smiling is out! In Australia you can have your passport application processed at any Post Office.
CONCLUSION
With these two Certificates and your Passport in hand, you are now ready to tackle the next step - YOUR APPLICATION.
