So much bull**** on this thread. The simple fact is APSMCC graduates are far better prepared for assessments and type rating. While Ryanair might have had a guiding hand in the regulation, many of the better MCC providers have offered enhanced versions for years.
The other key point is that the the APS has a test at the end of it, rather than just being an attendance course. I’ve trained hundreds of students on basic (20 hr) MCCs and I can tell you, we might have given them a certificate, (because they ‘completed’ the course), but only a few reached a point where I was confident they would pass a sim check. Many were awful including a percentage that I wouldn’t trust to sit the right way round on a lavatory let alone fly a transport category aircraft.
On an APS course there is a lot more scope to fix basic problems, and, if they cannot be fixed, then they will fail the APS assessment.
Simple fact is APSMCC holders have greater success rate at interview. You can bitch about the extra cost if you want, but as a percentage of your total spend it is small. If it gets you to a job a little bit quicker it pays for itself anyway.
Doing a basic MCC is a false economy.