[beginTheJourney]

Disclaimer - I am in the process of finishing up a 3 month SWE immersive program.

First, you have to be able to differentiate. There are many different programs out there and each come with their own level of quality - in terms of what is the prerequisite skill level, teaching methodology, technologies covered, quality expectations (in part, a side-effect of the candidates accepted and bar of entry), etc.. You would not equate all colleges because they run 4 years and provide the same general service.

Second, for me personally, it was well worth the cost of admission. The amount of material I learned in the last 10 weeks (6 days a week of 60+ dedicated/focused hours, the forced projects and assignments for reps, the teaching that illuminates the gaps (something that novices of any craft would waste countless hours on), an environment filled with other curious/driven SWEs to sharpen iron alongside....basically, don't underestimate what can be done in a short amount of time when one is focused and of decent competency.

There seems to be a consensus that mastery takes a long time to develop. That is true, however most people at their jobs are nowhere close to masters. Most individuals get to a period of "good" at best....and you can quickly get to "good".