Breaking Down Barriers One Career at a Time.
Aviation and skydiving offer life-changing careers—but for most people, the cost of entry makes them feel impossible. ASCEND exists to change that by removing financial barriers, providing clear guidance, and supporting motivated individuals from day one through long-term career growth.
Commercial Airline Pilot
Includes Private Pilot License, Instrument Rating, Commercial Certificate, Multi-Engine Rating, CFI/CFII ratings, and building 1,500 flight hours required for an ATP certificate. Most candidates must pay for flight instruction, aircraft rental, examiner fees, and living expenses while building hours through low-wage flight instructor work.
Tandem Skydiving Instructor
Includes student training, lift tickets required to meet 500 jump requirement, gear needed, FAA medical certification, coach rating course, and tandem rating course
FAA Senior Rigger
Includes apprenticeship under a certified rigger (minimum pack jobs documented), written and practical exams, tools, and reference materials. The biggest barrier is finding mentorship—there's very little public information on how to pursue this certification, and candidates often spend years trying to locate experienced riggers willing to train them.
Using information from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, along with insight from industry training providers, we evaluate the earning potential of the careers we support—from entry-level starting pay to long-term growth.
Each career path requires a meaningful investment of time, training, and financial resources. To be transparent about what it truly takes to succeed, we outline the typical training and experience required for each role and estimate the total cost of reaching that point. This approach helps ensure that donor support is targeted, realistic, and impactful—removing barriers while setting candidates up for long-term success, not just short-term wins.
The Numbers:
What it Really Costs
Individual Impact.
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Cost.
The cost of training remains one of the biggest barriers to entering and advancing in aviation and skydiving careers. By providing financial assistance at critical points in the training process, ASCEND Foundation helps reduce the burden that often prevents capable, motivated individuals from continuing forward.
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Information.
Many people struggle not because they lack ability, but because they lack clear, reliable information. We help individuals understand training pathways, timelines, and expectations so they can make informed decisions rather than expensive guesses.
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Structure.
Even with funding and information, progress is difficult without a clear framework. ASCEND Foundation supports structured development through defined pathways, milestones, and accountability—helping individuals move forward with purpose, confidence, and sustainability.
Industry-Wide Impact.
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Staffing Shortages.
Aviation and skydiving continue to face staffing shortages driven by high training costs, limited access, and early attrition. Too many capable individuals leave before they ever reach proficiency—not due to lack of ability, but lack of support during critical entry and development stages. Unlike traditional college pathways, there are few scholarships, limited loan options, and little structured support available for people pursuing these careers, making long-term participation unrealistic for many capable candidates.
By reducing financial barriers and supporting structured progression, ASCEND Foundation helps strengthen workforce pipelines and improve retention. This approach shifts the focus from constant replacement to sustainable workforce development built on preparation, continuity, and long-term commitment.
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Reduced Variability.
Training quality, expectations, and preparation can vary widely across the industry. In some cases, individuals are permitted to teach or operate training programs with little formal educational framework, resulting in uneven development and inconsistent outcomes for both individuals and employers.
ASCEND Foundation works to reduce this variability by reinforcing clearer standards, structured pathways, and accountable mentorship. Through structured skill development, we support intentional progression—so building hours or jump numbers reflects meaningful growth, ensuring progress builds competence, not just numbers. This reduces guesswork for employers and supports safer, more consistent outcomes across the industry.
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Safety Culture.
Strong safety cultures are built through consistency, access to reliable information, and people who are well educated and prepared to make good decisions. When training quality, mentorship, and expectations vary widely, individuals are often left relying on informal or inconsistent guidance. Over time, this “tribal knowledge” can normalize deviation and allow unsafe practices to quietly take hold.
The ASCEND Foundation helps strengthen safety culture at its foundation. By vetting mentors, setting higher expectations for funded students at Approved Training Centers, and providing strong leadership, we help ensure that guidance is accurate, consistent, and reliable. This creates safer learning environments, stronger judgment, and a culture where good practices are reinforced, shared, and sustained across the industry.
Your Investment Works Harder with ASCEND
ASCEND is led by industry professionals with years of experience in education, program development, safety and leadership, aviation, and skydiving. We’ve built programs, taught students, led operations, and worked inside the industries we’re supporting.
Because of this, we’re able to design and maintain programs in-house rather than outsourcing to expensive consultants. Keeping development and admin in-house keeps costs lower allows us to use funds on what matters most - supporting people.
Our impact per dollar is strong because we don’t outsource the “behind the scenes” work.
And, while we don’t outsource our program design, oversight, or administration, we do intentionally partner with small businesses and independent trainers through our ASCEND Approved Training Center (ATC) partnership program.
Supporting Small Businesses in the Industry & Creating Opportunity
While ASCEND keeps program design, oversight, and administration in-house, we intentionally support small businesses and independent trainers through our ASCEND Approved Training Center (ATC) partnerships.
ASCEND partners with dropzones, flight schools, and individual instructors operating as small businesses or LLCs, paying fair market value for their training services and sending them consistent, prepared candidates. These partnerships help create jobs, strengthen local operators, and allow trainers to grow sustainable training programs within their existing operations.
Beyond economic support, ASCEND’s ATC program raises the standard of safety and training across the industry. We provide partner organizations with structured training programs that go beyond minimum regulatory requirements, emphasizing best practices, sound decision-making, and professional development — not just rule compliance.
ATC partners also gain access to high-quality training materials developed by a professional educator and highly credentialed safety and program development team. These materials are intentionally designed for adult learning, combining clear instructional structure with thoughtful graphic design to improve comprehension, retention, and real-world application.
For many smaller operators, access to this level of program design, safety expertise, and instructional resources would otherwise be cost-prohibitive. Through ASCEND, partners can deliver higher-quality training, improve safety culture, and operate with confidence — without needing to build these systems from scratch.
By investing in ASCEND, donors help fund individual opportunity, support small businesses, and elevate safety and training standards across the aviation and skydiving industries.