DADE CITY, Fla. — New this year at Pasco-Hernando State College, students can get their degree learning all about drones. 

  • Program 1st of its kind offering degree in Florida
  • Wings Level Aviation Scholarship available 
  • Instructors: Drone pilots could fill career gaps in many industries

It’s all part of the school’s Unmanned Vehicle Systems Operations program. This is the only school in the state offering a program like this as a degree.

While right now he wants to learn how to build drones, Chase Owens says it wasn't his first career plan.

"It started off with 'Iron Man' suits, and I kind of toned it down -- a little more practical," Owens said. 

He's one of just six students enrolled in this new program working towards his Associate in Science degree.

"I want to build drones and make intelligence and search and rescue a little more personalized to the individual," Owens said. 

Students take the same ground school and meteorology courses as the students studying traditional piloting, and then get to test their skills in the air with several different types of drones. 

While many people fly drones for fun, the instructors say there are a lot of gaps drone pilots could help fill in many different industries. 

“For construction, let's say, we can fly the drone and create a 3D image of a building and then measure just one piece of the building that's very much reachable, let's say the base of a window, and with that small measurement we have the entire calculations of anything in that building," program director Mark Aragon explained. 

And with the aviation industry facing a shortage of traditional pilots, Aragon says the opportunities for drone pilots could continue to increase. 

"Our drone pilots are not just the operators of the aircraft," Aragon said. "They're also the scientists, the technicians that are going to be solving problems for the industry." 

School administrators say the Wings Level Aviation Scholarship is available for anyone interested in joining the PHSC aviation program. Students must have completed a semester at PHSC and have at least a 3.0 GPA.

Head to foundation.phsc.edu/scholarships to apply.