Meritocracy is the goal in this space, whether you have a degree or not should not matter. By asking for a degree some companies just want to know whether you c

Meritocracy is the goal in this space, whether you have a degree or not should not matter. By asking for a degree some companies just want to know whether you can study and achieve on your own. At the same time expecting mentorship is wrong. Asking for apprenticeship is not. Mentor-mentee approach is often taken in the wrong direction. The onus is on the mentee to ask for help, study and better his or her skills, with slight correction from someone willing to help you. BTW, there are many other ways to get help from outside of the company without whining about it (Stackoverflow? RTFM?). You want to work for a startup - you have to have a self-starter mentality. Sort of like: Give me a training budget that I can use to my advantage, and an environment to apply what I have learned. And leave me alone to produce better code. I want to be a viable contributor to the team. I can only do so when I can stand on my two feet. Nothing personal. Many developers are not opposed to help, far from it. It's just that when the student is ready the master comes. Mentors should select their mentees though earned relationship, potential, performance, IMHO.