Marc, That is certainly a valid way of doing things and would weed out people who may not have the aptitude for the program. I understand the military does this. From a marketing standpoint, little flight schools like the one I used to run back (way back) in the day were all about getting students and money in the door and our pockets. Our method led to problems because so many non-motivated students dropped out (look at the dismal completion rates for all ratings in all schools), but we got to stay in business. Now that I have the luxury of choosing my students I start them with their pre-solo work and after the first four or five hours of yanking and banking introduce academics – if they haven’t already introduced it to themselves. thanks for reading my stuff. kg