I must be in the minority then....I'm modular so i'm paying for my hour building before my exams with the wages from my current job. Doing my exams first would mean I would need a job after exams completed to pay for my hour building when the clock is ticking.
Generally to me it makes more sense to have the required CPL hours prior to doing the ATPL exams.
Yeah thats the way I did it. Horses for courses though and have run into people who did it the other way around. Also the "18 month rule" can have a bearing if you are doing some hours whilst distance learning the ATPL's. Then there is the 3 years you have to get your IR.