Speaking of cash... at this talk you attended on selection day, did they breach the subject of how long some people had to previously wait between finishing AQC and starting type rating, and how some have gone bankrupt?
Not particularly at the selection day, but certainly at the open day they did touch this subject thoroughly. We even had a session with John Monk, a 757/767 training captain for BA, and he made it particularly obvious that there will be more than likely delays, setbacks etc. He even told us that he had been made jobless three times during his career as a pilot, and that we should prepare for that.
Obviously, and I completely agree with you, CTC buff things up to make it all look pretty and attracting, but they certainly don't lie about the issues, or even obscure them as much as some people think they do.
I personally think that with a little appreciation and understanding about the drawbacks, and by preparing yourself for such occurances, it shouldn't be a major problem. For me, yes I am borrowing a large amount of money for the course, but luckily I have my parents support, and I have made the neccessary precautions to try to minimize any "downtime" that I may occur before gaining full employment by an airline. Ideally, I will do my type rating and go straight into employment by an airline, but I know that at the moment that is unlikely and I may have to fly as flexicrew, or even worse go do another job whilst I wait for a placement. For me it's worth it, because theres nothing else I want to do more than be a pilot.