Friday Feature: Matthew Bila

Published by Karli Henning on Thu, Mar 22, 2018

This Friday’s student feature is Matthew Bila! Matt is a 21-year-old Bronco from Goodrich, Michigan. He is currently a junior studying aviation management and operations. Matt is a member of Alpha Eta Rho at WMU and is currently an Aviation Ambassador with the CoA.

When asked about his decision to attend WMU, Matt says there were a few things that stood out to him. The biggest was Western’s location. Since he is from Michigan, it was hard for him to look outside the state when there was a nationally recognized aviation school only two hours away from his house. Matt also appreciated the size of Western. “Even though it’s a division 1 school, I still recognize faces and everything is walking distance on main campus in Kalamazoo.”

Beyond his interest in aviation management, Matt also enjoys traveling, especially during the summer and to northern Michigan. He also likes to listen to a variety of music, but his two favorite musicians are Jimmy Buffett and Zac Brown. Matt is also a huge fan of Disney and considers himself a Walt Disney history buff because he enjoys reading and learning about him. 

Matt’s favorite memory at the CoA to date is when he was able to help start the engines of our Boeing 727! He also notes that his favorite class at WMU thus far has been Advanced Aircraft Systems Lab.

After Matt graduates from WMU, he has many aspirations. One of these is working for an airline at their corporate headquarters and moving his way up the ladder. When asked to provide some advice to incoming aviation students on how to be successful, Matt says it’s never too early to begin reaching out and making connections with potential employers!

Keep up the awesome work, Matt!