Because we want talent, energy, and potential, not just people who can afford a big upfront fee.
Keeping the Academy lower reduces the barrier for young, fun, driven people, even if they don't have deep pockets. The remaining €400 is only repaid after you start earning (a €200 deduction in each of your first two paid weeks).
Academy is run on a minimum margin: we price it to stay accessible rather than to profit from training, so that €400 gap has to be recovered somehow. Comparable hands-on sailing and hospitality training elsewhere in the industry typically runs €2,000 to €3,000, often with no guarantee of work afterwards.
What this achieves
Accessible entry: you don't need the full cost up front to get started.
Genuinely affordable training: comparable (often better) training for a fraction of what similar programmes charge elsewhere, without paying it all upfront.
Fair risk-share: you repay the subsidy only once you're getting paid.
Aligned incentives: we invest in people we believe will pass and work; you invest your effort. QD loses €400 on each student that fails Academy: we really want you to pass!