On the subject of payment, I would like to quote the advice of our own Pprune Towers in a very similar thread from a couple of years ago:
Originally Posted by Pprune Towers
Most basic advice of all for any foreign training.
Never pay up front.
Never pay up front in travelers cheques
Never pay up front by transfer to a bank in a third country or offshore.
Never pay up front.
Never pay up front to gain a supposed 'discount.'
Never go to a school that claims credit cards can only be used for minor ancillary items like charts.
Every single one of these ploys effectively strips you of basic rights and makes you a prisoner of that school.
If you have problems with the school, it's equipment, accommodation or any other part of the package you are trapped in a foreign country without any effective short term recourse or bargaining tool.
This warning will appear again on certain threads in the future. We make no apologies in forcefully educating wannabes.
Think about this: If the school is any good and it is in an aviation friendly, fine weather part of the world it must have a constant throughput of students. What possible need is there then for large, instant chunks of money surging into the cashflow. It also raises the question of why certain establishments insist on such payment methods especially when paid in a way which bypasses both the RICO and Money Laundering legislation the rest of us have to face when paying for goods and services in the States.
Scroggs