Thanks for sharing part of your story. Unfortunately, corporate America is looking for that piece of paper and is missing out on many great hires because of it. It is also hard to blame them though, as having a degree gives some credibility on your subject and shows you can accomplish something, while hiring someone without a degree might be a wildcard. Congrats on getting through debt-free as well! I feel this is an extremely important topic as many young people are hampering their future with student loan debt hanging around their neck when it is largely a choice of picking a school that is affordable - once you have that job, it turns into how you preform and nobody cares about where you went to school. Perhaps a prestigious school may open some more doors, but there are no guarantees of that and having the right connections (sometimes from a coffee shop) by networking and getting noticed is probably more effective than an alumni network.