When
Applications open every September, at the welcome day for new students, and stay open for two or three weeks. If a given year needs more people, a second round may open after the January exams, in late January or February.
Outside those windows no one is admitted. If you arrive at another point in the year, follow us on social media and watch for September.
How
- Form. A single, general one. You do not pick a department when applying: the coordinators look at where each person fits best, because some years Manufacturing and Aerodynamics fill up fast while Operations and Electronics run short.
- Interview. When the form closes, the secretary contacts applicants and arranges a short chat to get to know each other.
- Answer. A few days later a message arrives with the decision and, if it is a yes, the assigned department.
The form goes to DIANA’s official account. Everyone is contacted from there.
Requirements
Those set by the statutes, and no others:
- Be a UCLM student.
- Be over 18 and under 30.
Degree and prior experience do not matter. Everyone can help and learn. What does count is availability and initiative: without time to come to the workshop or the drive to get things done, it is hard to fit in.
Time commitment
Realistically, with five or six hours a week per person everything runs well, and no more will be asked. If you take it seriously, it ends up feeling like an extra course.
Fees
None. The association has not established any membership fee so far.
Flying
Piloting is a separate role, not a department. Anyone who wants to be a pilot interviews with the chief pilot. There is training: the basics first, then a PC simulator, and once there is some skill, real flight, first with a beginner’s glider and then with the team’s aircraft. The team tries not to have more than two backup pilots.