>It's kind of like the school being the apprentice level where you learn the craft, maybe even work on some real-world projects with the supervision of the professors. Once you have the basics down, you graduate and become a journeyman. You go out into the world and work at real jobs and get real experience. When you have enough experience, you take an exam, or present a project, or something like that to show you've mastered the craft. Then you're a master.
>
>It's a simple system. Worked fine for other crafts in the past. Why not computers?
>
>-Michelle

Actually, this DOES work in the programming area to a great extent. Many people (some of whom have responded to this thread) are making good livings without a 4-year college degree because they have experience they can document and mentors who are proud to give a good reference. However, every employer must make out a list of requirements, and 'Fluent Spanish' or '4-year degree in CS' are ways of weeding people out.