I always laugh at the "real formal education" wakkers.
Plenty of them who have never been to Uni and think it is the ultimate educator.
Plenty with degrees working at Maccas or driving cabs.
Plenty of MBAs and Bch/Economics who ears less than even a cook or cleaner up at the mines. [shows how good their education was!]
Anyone who thinks they can make the "big bucks" in this industry simply by throwing money at a flying school really has no idea!
That said, it is possible now to pay for a jet job which once ,rightly or wrongly, was available only for about one in seven.
