Gregcart, be warned about Eaglejet. I know someone who did their program in the 737. He paid for 500 hours but only got 400 hours as the airline suddenly cut his training abruptly for no reason. His suspicion is, EJ did not pay the airline in full thus cutting his training.
Make sure you have a contract with the airline to complete your required hours and maybe a contract for a job at the end of it. Don't settle for anything else. Good luck.
To your other question, the more intense and closely spaced your training is, the better the retention rate.
D6