<p>@SEWinter,
</p>
<p>All the other notables mentioned in the article were “vetted” by being admitted into and attending a reputable (not necessarily Ivy) university:</p>
<ul>
<li> Michael Dell: dropout UT Austin </li>
<li> Steve Jobs: dropout Reed College </li>
<li> Bill Gates: dropout Harvard</li>
<li> Mark Zuckerburg: dropout Harvard</li>
<li> Jack Dorsey (Twitter): dropout NYU</li>
<li> Evan Williams (Twitter): dropout U Nebraska</li>
<li> Kevin Rose (Digg): dropout U Nevada Las Vegas</li>
</ul>
<p>Or, if they did not go to college at all they received a big injection of venture capital: </p>
<ul>
<li> David Karp (Tumblr): attended an exclusive NY Upper West Side private school before attending Bronx Science and finally being homeschooled. He used his earnings as a software consultant for UrbanBaby to launch Tumblr which expanded after investment money from venture capitalists.</li>
</ul>
<p>The NYT article goes on to mention several “no-college” gurus who are advocating for students to skip college. They are telling students to do as they say, not as they do:</p>
<p>
Thiel graduated B.A. Stanford, then a graduated J.D. Stanford Law School. </p>
<p>
Altucher graduated B.S. Cornell, then was a PhD. candidate at Carnegie Mellon. </p>
<p>The last person mentioned in the article, HS senior Jean Fan, an editor for “UnCollege”, is applying to elite universities right now. </p>
<p>Yes, there may be a zillion jobs out there that don’t require college or venture capital, but I will continue to counsel my kids that their odds of landing a job that pays a living wage and is intellectually fulfilling are severely curtailed if they do not go to college.</p>