I think it's generally agreed upon that LaTeX is more difficult to use than Word for basic documents, but as requirements grow more advanced it slowly becomes t

I think it's generally agreed upon that LaTeX is more difficult to use than Word for basic documents, but as requirements grow more advanced it slowly becomes the other way around. I think the point of that cutoff is often exaggerated in the academic world. To put it cynically, I think there's somewhat of an ego boost in thinking one's writing is so advanced that they must use special tools to express it. That's not the conscious thought process, just an explanation for the allure of overcomplicating things.