You don't need college if:

a) you were born rich

b) you can work with your hands (e.g. plumbing, auto technicians, service workers, salon folks) -- but you may need additional "vocational" schooling

c) you become wealthy through starting your own company/consulting

d) you don't want a job in modern-day America.

Am I missing any options?

"Bill Gates dropped out of college. So did Michael Dell. So did Mr. Zuckerberg, who made the Forbes billionaires list at 23.

Mr. Zuckerberg’s story is familiar to anyone who has seen the 2010 film “The Social Network,” in which Harvard seems little more than a glorified networking party for him. While the other Phi Beta Kappas are trudging through their Aristophanes, his character is hitting the parties, making contacts and making history. The dropout-mogul-as-rock-star meme will get a further boost with coming Steve Jobs biopics, including “Jobs,” starring Ashton Kutcher, and another one in the works written by Aaron Sorkin, who wrote the screenplay for “The Social Network.”"

Excuse me? Ashton Kutcher as Steve Jobs?!

 Smart marketing move by Ashton.

Actually, most of the best programmers I know skipped (or left) college.

College is not necessary for programming.

So any profession that can be self-taught by an autodidact. Or does programming attract a greater number of autodidacts?