A long time ago, during another recession, as a newly qualified pilot I mistakenly got conned out of my hard earned for a F27 groundschool with the promise of a job. Thankfully after taking in quite a few people, the fella had a visit from Mr. Fist! I then went on to compound this by paying for a Shorts 330 rating which nearly, but not quite, ended in a £50/ a night moving newspapers across the North Sea! So, its not to be recommended. Although, I did know a guy who bought himself a 757 rating which led to a job, so never say never!
Frankly, in this environment, if you have money to spend I'd get an FI rating to keep you flying. Amazing how you get to hear about KingAir type jobs coming up for grabs when you work on an airfield. Good luck for the future.