7500
You are, of course, quite correct. There is nothing about being an aviation enthusiast that makes you a better ATCOS than someone who is not an enthusiast.
What makes me prefer enthusiasts is the commitment to getting the job, keeping it & to carrying through this enthusiasm to the job once qualified.
I have seen many trainees over 40 years. I have seen quite a few fail & a lot who went on to be controllers. In my view, most ( but not all )of the best controllers came from the ranks of the "enthusiasts". That is, in no way, to suggest that some of the best controllers I have seen have not been "enthusiasts"; but, in my experience, a lot of the ones we lost were those who came from the "only in it for the money" brigade.
My course, all ex-assistants (& not all "enthusiasts") lost one out of 24. Which I believe is a record.