Alaska Airlines runs a relatively streamlined application, which includes an online assessment and an on-demand video interview. This guide walks you through exactly what to expect at each stage, from submitting your application through to your first day of training in Seattle.
Alaska hires in defined windows rather than accepting applications on a rolling basis, so the practical shape of “how long this takes” depends heavily on timing. Once a window opens, though, the stages themselves follow a consistent and fairly quick sequence compared to some legacy carriers.
- Recruitment Status
- What You Need to Know Before You Start
- Minimum Requirements
- The Recruitment Process, Step by Step
- Step 1: Submit Your Application
- Step 2: Complete the Online Values-Fit Assessment
- Step 3: Complete the On-Demand Video Interview (ODVI)
- Step 4: Attend the Assessment Day in Seattle
- Step 5: Final Face-to-Face Interview
- Step 6: Conditional Job Offer (CJO)
- Step 7: Drug Testing and Background Checks
- Step 8: Training in Seattle
Recruitment Status
Alaska Airlines reopened its flight attendant application window at 9 am PT on July 20. The application window is only expected to remain open for three days. There’s a real-time pressure in submitting your application as fast as possible, but don’t rush yourself. You have some time to review your resume and ensure it is in the best possible shape before you click submit.
The same applies to the online assessments (which you’ll read more about below). Yes, you are under pressure, but don’t rush yourself. Make sure you are well rested and in a quiet place where you can fully concentrate on the task at hand before completing the online assessments.
Worth Knowing: This Step-By-Step Guide explains the recruitment process for Alaska Airlines, not Horizon Air or Hawaiian Airlines. Seperate guides are in the works.
What You Need to Know Before You Start
A few things are worth understanding before you apply:
- You won’t be assigned a base until partway through initial training, and you could end up relocating to any of Alaska Airlines’ bases (Anchorage, Los Angeles, Portland, San Diego, San Francisco, or Seattle). Our base guide covers this in full.
- Training is six weeks, unpaid, and takes place in Seattle. You’ll receive a $40 per diem daily and single-occupancy hotel accommodation for the duration of the course, but no salary until you’re an active Flight Attendant.
- Alaska and Hawaiian Airlines currently run separate Flight Attendant contracts, separate seniority lists, and separate hiring processes, despite the 2024 merger. This guide is specifically for Alaska mainline.
- Horizon Air, Alaska’s regional partner, also runs its own separate Flight Attendant hiring process with different bases and a shorter, paid training program.
Worth knowing: If you apply and aren’t successful, Alaska Airlines allows reapplication six months after a rejection, sometimes referred to as TBNT (“Thanks But No Thanks”).
Minimum Requirements
- Minimum age of 21
- A high school diploma or equivalent
- Two years of customer or community service experience
- Able to fly unrestricted in and out of every country Alaska and Hawaiian Airlines operate to
- Reach 82 inches vertically on tiptoes, without shoes (roughly 5’2″ and up)
- Comfortable in a swimming pool wearing a life vest during emergency training, and in water during an actual inflight emergency
- Able to attend six weeks of unpaid training in Seattle (transportation and accommodation provided)
- Open to relocating to any current or future Alaska base
No previous Flight Attendant experience is required. Alaska’s tattoo policy is more specific than a blanket ban, and our appearance and grooming guide covers this in detail.
The Recruitment Process, Step by Step
Step 1: Submit Your Application
Apply through Alaska’s own careers site once a hiring window is open. Avoid creating multiple profiles as Alaska Airlines specifically asks candidates not to do so. At this point in the recruitment journey, your resume is doing all the work. It’s imperative that your resume is tailored to Alaska Airlines and the flight attendant role.
Your resume should highlight your professional achievements, aligned with Alaska Airlines’ values and the day-to-day role of a flight attendant.
What are Alaska Airlines’ four values?
- Own safety – We each take personal responsibility for keeping our team and guests safe
- Do the right thing – We have trust in each other and are empowered to take ownership of the situation
- Be caring and kind – We take pride in always being generous, considerate and serving the needs of others
- Deliver performance – We perform at the highest level while always looking for better ways to succeed as a team
If you don’t know where to start, we recommend visiting our CV and Resume Hub, where there is an extensive library of guides to help you write a winning flight attendant resume.
If you are short on time, then, at the very least, ensure you read this guide: The Step-by-Step Guide to Creating Your Perfect Cabin Crew Resume →
Step 2: Complete the Online Values-Fit Assessment
Successful applicants are invited to complete an online assessment, which is designed to measure how well you fit against the airline’s core values. The test will ask you how much you agree or disagree with a series of statements, which are based on Alaska Airlines’ values (see above).
Don’t hedge your bets: Either agree or disagree with a statement. Remain consistent throughout, as some questions will be testing the same value but are worded differently. Keep in mind the airline’s own values throughout the assessment.
To give you an idea of what this test is like, we have created our very own bespoke Values Fit practice assessment with direct feedback at the end.
Cabin Crew Values Fit Practice Assessment →
Step 3: Complete the On-Demand Video Interview (ODVI)
If you are shortlisted following the online assessment, you will be invited to complete an on-demand video interview, or ODVI for short.
You will be presented with six or seven situational-based questions, which will require you to draw on your experience to answer. A question will appear on the screen, and you will be given a short prep window before the screen automatically starts recording you.
The questions follow a similar format: “Tell me about a time when…” style questions that ask you to draw on a real example from your own experience rather than answer a hypothetical.
The two most common (and trusted) ways to structure your answer are STAR, which stands for Situation, Task, Action, Result, and SOAR, which stands for Situation, Objective, Action, Result.
We recommend the SOAR framework specifically for cabin crew interviews, since replacing Task with Objective better reflects how flight attendants are expected to independently judge what needs to happen in a situation, rather than simply carrying out an assigned task.
To prepare properly, we explain in detail how to use these frameworks in our article: SOAR to Success
If you haven’t taken part in an on-demand video interview before or you don’t feel very confident with this stage, then definitely check out these companion guides: What is an ODVI? Part One and How to Ace the Cabin Crew Video Interview: Part Two
Step 4: Attend the Assessment Day in Seattle
Candidates who progress are invited to an in-person Assessment Day at Alaska Airlines’ Seattle facility. This is where the Professional Standards (tattoo and appearance) check happens at check-in, so arrive prepared and compliant rather than hoping to explain your way through it.
The day itself combines a series of group and individual assessments, allowing recruiters to see how you actually behave around other people in a live, unscripted setting: how you listen, how you contribute to a group task, how you handle pressure, and whether you come across as someone passengers would want looking after them.
For more details on how an Assessment Day works and how to perform your best, read this companion guide: How to Ace the Cabin Crew Assessment Day – The Best Tips and Advice That Really Do Work
Step 5: Final Face-to-Face Interview
A one-on-one interview is typically held the same day as the Assessment Day rather than as a separate, later stage. This is where recruiters will dig into your motivations, your understanding of the role, and specific competency-based questions in more depth than the ODVI allowed.
Prepare for the final interview by reviewing the guides that can be found in our Interview Preparation Hub
Step 6: Conditional Job Offer (CJO)
Alaska typically extends a Conditional Job Offer the same day as the Assessment Day and final interview.
Step 7: Drug Testing and Background Checks
Candidates who accept a CJO complete a drug screening test, which tests for marijuana regardless of the legal status in your home state. Alaska Airlines no longer tests for nicotine.
Standard background checks will also be completed before you are allowed to start training.
Step 8: Training in Seattle
Once all background checks come back satisfactory, you will be invited to complete six weeks of unpaid training at Alaska Airlines’ state-of-the-art training facility in Seattle. You’ll receive a $40 daily per diem and single-occupancy hotel accommodation for the full six weeks, but no salary during this stage.
Training is intense and condensed: Expect roughly 9 hours a day, 5 to 6 days a week, with a substantial amount of additional study time outside class hours. Travelling home on days off during training may be genuinely difficult given the schedule. You’ll be assigned your base during training, and while you can set a preference, the final decision comes down to Alaska Airlines.
Ready to Apply?
Applications must be submitted on the official Alaska Airlines Group careers website.
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