Becoming a fighter pilot isn’t what Rob Rossiter went to the University of Kansas for. Rossiter earned a degree in Business Administration in May but hasn’t found a job since graduating. He is considering not using the degree he worked four years for in favor of joining the Air Force to fly jets.

Rossiter, Omaha, Neb., figured he would have a job lined up by June. Last week reality slapped him in the face when Freightquote.com gave a job he wanted to another candidate.

“I honestly thought I interviewed well and the company liked me a lot,” Rossiter said. “But I guess getting turned down is part of the real world.”

Rossiter applied for five jobs in the Kansas City metro and did not get hired. He recognized that his job search could have been more aggressive, but being a businessman was not his only aspiration.

Rossiter said he was seriously considering chasing his lifelong dream of flying planes in the military.

“I have wanted to be a fighter pilot since before I can remember,” Rossiter said. “My friends make fun of me because they think trying being a pilot is a waste of my time and my education, but I am not living for my friends.”

About two months ago, he decided to get serious about weighing his options regarding entering flight training. He started e-mailing 2nd Lt. Chad Haring, a trainee in the Air Force flight school, to learn more about what it would take to begin flight training.

Rossiter said talking with someone who had actually been through the process made him realize the process was much longer and more grueling than he thought.

“Talking with Chad was great,” Rossiter said. “I really knew very little about the enlisting process and Chad provided a ton of useful information for me.”

Because Rossiter would first have to become an officer to even be admitted to flight school. To become an officer, he would have to take physical, medical and written tests.

The testing period could take as long as five months, and if Rossiter passed he would then go to a 10-week boot camp before beginning flight school.

Haring said that if Rossiter took the tests, he would be taking an unconventional route to flight school. He said more often students first participated in Air Force ROTC and advanced through the program.

Rossiter said Haring told him the Air Force was the most competitive flight program in the armed forces. This opened his eyes to the possibility of enlisting in the Marines or the Navy.

“If I have a better chance to fly in a different branch then I would be willing to do that, but the Air Force has the best training and facilities,” Rossiter said.

No matter which branch he chose, he would still not be admitted to flight training for months.

For the time being, Rosssiter said he needed to find a job for the next year, and he needs to find one soon. His lease, which his parents pay for, ends on July 31st, and then he is on his own.

“I am not giving up on my dream of being a pilot, but I have accepted that I will probably have to work for a year and try to pass the tests in my spare time,” Rossiter said.

He admitted being a businessman-lawyer-pilot would be unusual, but he said his friends with degrees do not have any definite plans either. Some of these friends were skeptical of his hopes to become a pilot.

“Rob must be crazy thinking he’s going to be a pilot,” said Mike Carlson, Rossiter’s former roommate. “People with business degrees don’t join the military.”

Rossiter said he prepared himself to accept that he might work somewhere next year that didn’t inspire him. He said he was OK with that scenario because he knew life was ahead of him and he did not intend on making any long-term job commitments.

“I just need a job,” Rossiter said. “Right now I am zero for five, but I am going to keep working at it and I think I will land on my feet.”

Law school was another option for Rossiter. His parents, both attorneys, encouraged him to take the law school entrance exam, the LSAT. He planned on taking the June exam, but the commotion surrounding the last month of school and graduation weekend prevented him from dedicating sufficient study time to the LSAT.

“Honestly, I still plan on taking the LSAT in October because I am curious to see how well I can do, but I knew I would not be able to prepare myself by June,” Rossiter said.

The problem with waiting until October is that he stills needs to support himself for a year before entering law school if he gets accepted.

Time will tell whether Rossiter will make it into flight school or if he goes to law school. For now, he represents a growing number of college graduates looking for work.

— Edited by Matt Hirschfeld