I think the recruiting is probably correct, the course length pretty much hasn't changed regardless of shortage, some courses have had everone go through to final field training, you do get some second chances if you fail an exam but they have to balance people getting a fair grasp on being an ATC and doing it well with the fact that a majority of the population probably can't do the job, and more or less they probably have the balance right, some might disagree, its not meant to be easy at all.