still think that something has to be fairly wrong with the field if it can't make a better opera just to prove that it can and to make some money, but something can be fairly wrong with a field without the field being bogus.

You have forgotten Goldman's Law (of Hollywood, but it applies to all art, and particularly to making money from art): "Nobody knows anything."

Also, these schools don't teach music industry - just music appreciation and making. There are schools that are for the specific purpose of teaching music writing and performance in order to make money. (The younger teen just applied to go to that one.)