There is a real difference between being able to work in a team, and "being good at navigating office politics". When you want some software shipped, you don't

There is a real difference between being able to work in a team, and "being good at navigating office politics". When you want some software shipped, you don't only need good programmers, you need good programmers that can work together, and fulltime experience helps with this. That said, I do not think fulltime employment is the only way to get this subset of abilities.