No they can't. You are trying to force the issue. You need a concrete project and you iterate on it with features. You add gui and a database. You refactor and optimize. These courses are cookie cutter in a vacuum problem sets that give you high level ideas but not the experience of dealing with messy constraints. Also don't be open to any framework. Choose one get good, finish a project start a new one get better. Buy books on the subject. You are not going to listen your way into six figures you have to do the work.