Should I join a bootcamp with an electrical engineering degree and 8 years XP (unrelated to SW)?

Hi, if you've done any scripting, or even Verilog, I think you'll pick up programming fast. So I think going to a bootcamp depends on your goals. Codesmith is certainly one of the top programs for getting a job at the end, and wouldn't be a bad choice. But you likely don't need a bootcamp either, as your friends have said. If you can work on the CS fundamentals (e.g. CS50) and get really good at solving general data structures and algorithms programs, you can probably get a job on your own. If you are gunning for a top tier/FAANG-level job, I would look more at career accelerations (e.g. Interview Kickstart, Outco, Formation.dev (see disclosure)) that focus on getting you interview ready. Codesmith/a bootcamp would be a good option for getting a solid first foor in the door job as a SWE. Disclosure for any biases: I'm the co-founder of Formation.dev so I'm fairly biased to focus on the fundamentals and about hyper focusing on finding the right job path for you uniquely as the best approach for anyone looking for a SWE job.