r/airtrafficcontrol

trying to keep it short but i just got my grad tech job offer which i have started at the same time i got my offer for ATC with NATS but they have not given me a start date

i feel equally as passionate about both jobs but i do like ATC more because I like how its more hands on/intense/high pressured and just in general i have always been an aviation geek so ATC does excite me more than my current tech job does

now i need to make a decision and cant decide - the biggest thing holding me back at the moment is location uncertainty as i do live in a very big city and the only upgrade from here would be London i dont mind the training at gloucester for a year but after that i dont wanna end up at belfast for the rest of my life

can someone from the UK help me decide - i feel like ive painted this very romanticised nice version of the ATC job in my head and I might be wrong

whats really pulling me towards ATC aside from the job itself is work life balance and how you leave your work at work and cant bring it home because w tech i bring my laptop home w me and jus cannot switch off

but then i do worry bout the night shifts and my circadian rythym and also how the career is short lived apparenlty u have to retire around 50 and also what if i get ill and lose my medical

also i have no clue about the pay? whats the ceiling? i have spoke to ppl and they have said u can hit 100k within the first 4 years easy but whats the ceiling?

should i quit tech?

i really want to quit it but everyone keeps saying i can make more money w tech and work from home etc and have flexiblity

but i like the intensity of the job and how once im home im home and dont have to bring my work home w me

im done w my laptop just want out

also ATC feels more meaningful - like when i imagine myself in the role i acc feel like i matter

“Hello, I’m currently preparing to apply for an ATC (Air Traffic Control) program at an aviation university in Korea as an international student. Due to financial limitations, I can’t afford to study in the US.

I would like to ask whether, after graduating from an ATC program in Korea and obtaining the required ATC certifications, I would have opportunities to work as an air traffic controller in the US or in other countries. Korea is definitely one of the countries I’m considering, but I’m also curious about opportunities in places like the US, the UK, Australia, and others.

Would I need to earn additional degrees, licenses, or certifications to work in those countries? Also, are ATC programs and the knowledge taught generally standardized internationally, or does each country have very different systems and requirements?

I’d really appreciate any advice or experiences you can share. Thank you so much!”

Phases? Pass/fail flags per session? Instructor hours tracked by the team leader? Position or sector differentiation? Predefined challenges in the training plan - wx events like TS or TCU on final, icing, turbulence, or procedural stuff like rwy change, inspection, holds?
Been through a few OJTs across different units and facilities. The backbone was always similar but the details varied more than you’d expect - what got logged, how instructor feedback was recorded, whether anyone actually reviewed it before the next session or just filed it somewhere.
Curious how it looks elsewhere, and also I’m building a training log app specifically for OJT. Not trying to reinvent the whole training system, just fix the part where you’re either scribbling on paper or half-filling an Excel sheet that nobody touches again. Session notes, challenge flags, instructor tracking, phase progression - stuff that’s actually useful during the OJT, not just at the end when you’re signing off paperwork.
Still early, so the more I hear from people who’ve actually been through it, the better. If your setup is totally different from what I described, that’s just as useful to know.