A lot of what you will learn in a degree is like doing your katas. They're fun to learn but many (if any) of the moves are too situational and abstract that you'll rarely get the chance to apply them. And when you do, you may forget about them in the moment under pressure.
But learning those techniques in a safe environment you'll have a chance to develop some finesse and also have good technical foundations. But there's no replacement for actually getting field experience by sparring/fighting.
A seasoned brawler/street fighter will seem uncouth and may have some unorthodox habits but they will be more successful in the day to day than most theoreticians who aren't out there applying what they're learning.
Some Bruce Lee quotes I like wrt software engineering...
Adapt what is useful, reject what is useless, and add what is specifically your own.
If you spend too much time thinking about a thing, you’ll never get it done.
Before I learned the art, a punch was just a punch, and a kick, just a kick. After I learned the art, a punch was no longer a punch, a kick, no longer a kick. Now that I understand the art, a punch is just a punch and a kick is just a kick