I have hired both types of candidate. In my opinion, a four-year college degree is worth roughly the same amount as two years of real-world experience. There ar

I have hired both types of candidate. In my opinion, a four-year college degree is worth roughly the same amount as two years of real-world experience. There are exceptions on both sides, but on average four years of college seems to be roughly equivalent to two years of work experience. Someone with college experience will probably know more theory, which is useful. But they rarely realize that large projects are significantly different from their college work, and they don't understand why you have to do what your users want instead of what the theory says is correct. So when I hire someone with a degree and no experience, I know my team will need to teach them those things. On the other hand, people without college degrees can get into a lot of trouble if they don't learn the theory behind their work (especially algorithmic complexity). So when I hire someone without a degree, I know my team will need to teach them those things.