The problem with creative writing degrees is they have so low correlation with immediate success.
They are also self-directed, a student must put into the degree what they want to take out. This makes what is learned hard to quantify.
Even though the thesis is a concrete product and the required papers potentially publishable, the students are working on learning techniques in literature and the overall traditions of literature, as well as methods for teaching literature in addition to building a product.
Also, the programs are difficult to get into because there is always this evaluation from the committees that accept students that the community at large will get something back of value.
For the student who is trying to produce a work of art, often facing difficulties in many forms over a two-year period, the sense of worthlessness and frustration is increased when the feedback doesn’t address their needs as a student.
Some of the critiques can seem personal, some can make the writer feel like they are a liar, some can direct instead of encouraging, and some can seem like it is missing. Others can feel like they are cut off from society, even the society of writers and artists.
Many famous writers have been driven out of programs simply because their vision doesn’t match the expectations of the program.
Literature is a very lonely craft with a long history of innovation so the writer can feel frustrated in their attempt to be original, truthful, wise, etc.