That's not 1/3 of that 35 to 40k. The employer pays the fee, not the employee. This is very important. We don't want you to make less money; in fact, if that was the case many people who are already in highly paid jobs would not do it (myself included).
Funded startups that are looking for the top talent, at any cost, are the ones that I assume will benefit the most. For them, 1/3 of the 1st year salary is an investment. Better pay that rather than having to have the position open for 6 months (time is money). Hiring is extremely hard, and the people you want to hire... are by definition almost never looking for jobs. These are the same people that are attracted by the idea of spending 3 months mastering a bleeding edge technology.
Funded startups that are looking for the top talent, at any cost, are the ones that I assume will benefit the most. For them, 1/3 of the 1st year salary is an investment. Better pay that rather than having to have the position open for 6 months (time is money). Hiring is extremely hard, and the people you want to hire... are by definition almost never looking for jobs. These are the same people that are attracted by the idea of spending 3 months mastering a bleeding edge technology.