Rocksteady, to put it into perspective, how much will the average young bloke go into hock for to pay for a flash car or ute these days? A heap of cash they don't really have.
That's basically giving money away, but it's acceptable because it's just what everyone does.
Paying for a qualification is investing in your future, and if you really want to fly for a living, it's what you have to do, if you don't happen to be fortunate enough to get someone to pay you while you learn (I was lucky enough to get into the RAAF - if I hadn't, I would certainly have done whatever else I had to do to get a flying job).