Like others have said, it really depends. As somebody who works-to-live and doesn't particularly love software, I never would have achieved the knowledge I hav

Like others have said, it really depends. As somebody who works-to-live and doesn't particularly love software, I never would have achieved the knowledge I have now on my own. I needed the real-life deadlines and stress to learn. Additionally, I can say with quite a bit of confidence that I use knowledge obtained from university almost every day, even if indirectly. If you do decide to go to school (and are in the United States), I would highly consider the community college -> in-state public university route. I went to a top-30-ish CS program at a large in-state institution, and I don't think I missed out on many opportunities because of it. Unless you get into CMU, MIT, Stanford, etc. just pick a large, hopefully cheap in-state school, make good grades, and apply to jobs through your school's network. However, if you're the type-A/self-motivated type, you can totally learn learn enough on your own to land an entry-level gig. I will never be that kind of person, but I work with people who are, and they earn the same if not more than I do doing the exact same job.