There's another option that's even cheaper. My training to enter software development was less than $1,000 (various books and online courses + plus lots of hour

There's another option that's even cheaper. My training to enter software development was less than $1,000 (various books and online courses + plus lots of hours behind the keyboard). While that might not provide a deep CS background, its enough to become a competent developer to build real things and obtain a job. And if someone feels like they still need that CS degree, do so after entering the field and pay tuition out of pocket along the way.