For many college students, the path to a career is a straight line. But for BYU-Idaho alumnus Tyler Ely, finding his professional niche required a major pivot, one that ultimately pointed his sights toward the sky.
Today, Ely spends his days in the cockpit of private corporate jets, routinely transporting business leaders, property owners and quiet billionaires across the country in their high-stakes world of business.
A Dynamic View from the Cockpit
Ely's daily routine is a far cry from the predictable, rigid schedules of commercial airlines. On any given day, he must navigate rapidly shifting weather systems, manage intensive pre-flight preparations and transit high-profile passengers to multiple destinations on a dime.
"I think one day I flew from Atlanta, I dropped them off in Orlando at one airport, picked him up in a different airport south of Orlando, Florida, flew them over to West Palm Beach and then took right back off," Ely said.
Changing Altitude Mid-Course
Landing this level of responsibility didn't happen overnight, and Ely's journey to the runway was anything but conventional. While studying at BYU-Idaho, Ely was actually working toward a degree in business finance.
The further he got into his coursework, the more he realized his heart wasn't in the corporate office. However, because he was already deep into his program, he realized restarting his academic track from scratch wouldn't make practical sense.
"If nothing's really jiving with you, you either have to switch before you're too far in," Ely recommended. "So, if you have your general eds, then my recommendation would be go finish out at UVU or somewhere that has a flight school if you're not sure."
After graduating from BYU-Idaho, Ely fully committed to his passion for aviation. He relocated to Seattle, Wash. for intense flight school training, followed by a grueling year of flight instruction to build up his hours.
Merging Two Worlds
Though a finance degree might seem entirely separate from piloting a multi-million-dollar jet, Ely found that his college education prepared him for his current career in an entirely unexpected way.
In the private aviation sector, pilots often interact closely with their passengers. Ely's background in business allows him to seamlessly connect and converse with the influential leaders sitting in his cabin.
“When they're on the plane, I get to talk about different things, and they enjoy it because then I'm not just a stick on the wall, right?" Ely said. "Somebody that can't understand what they're talking about as far as different financial ratios or different things that make sense.”
For current BYU-Idaho students worried about choosing the "perfect" major, Ely’s journey serves as a reminder that no education is wasted. Sometimes, the most unexpected combination of skills is exactly what helps you stand out and soar.