University is a good way to meet people with similar interests. You may also have a couple professors that inspire you in some way. But the other 80% of it is

University is a good way to meet people with similar interests. You may also have a couple professors that inspire you in some way. But the other 80% of it is a waste of time. It's like a job; you could learn things on your own much faster but you're forced to go slower because of the way things are set up. If I could advise my 18 year old self, I would probably take a couple part time courses that seem interesting (and attend some extracurricular activities around campus, and go to parties as well) and then spend the rest of my time writing software and reading books on my own.