The work samples are key, whether they consist of previous work or of "the examples they did in class". If candidate A has a degree and a portfolio, they'll ha

The work samples are key, whether they consist of previous work or of "the examples they did in class". If candidate A has a degree and a portfolio, they'll have an edge over candidate B who just has the portfolio. If A's class examples are crappy, and B's work examples are great, B will have the edge. (You have a bit of a chicken-and-egg problem for candidate B, though, since if they've spent time building up a strong portfolio of work then by definition they are not "straight out of high school.") What kind of degree matters too, though; a real CS degree from a real school is worth a lot more than certain for-profit institution's halfway-accredited "you too can be a real live web developer!" programs.