I think it really depends on you. More specifically, it depends on your learning style, how self-motivated you are, and how outgoing you are. There are big pros and big cons on both sides.
I have a high school education. I've also been an extremely motivated self-learner and voracious reader since early childhood. I'm one of those who learned programming on my own, from books, at age 12, and then spent most of my waking life over the next 8 years writing code and reading about software development. And yes, for me it is something I truly love from the core of my being, and will never, ever be just a job. Although somewhat introverted, I tend to be very enthusiastic and aggressive while job-hunting.
I started my software career at 20 and advanced very quickly during the dot-com boom. I just finished a 5-year stint at Microsoft. I don't think I could have landed a job at Google 5 years ago, but I've been contacted by their recruiters since leaving MS, and I believe I'd have a shot if I really poured myself into reviewing/studying the right subject matter.
As I see it, the main advantage of my route is that I've never had any significant debt, but I still made the senior dev salary and the bonuses. More importantly, this has made it very easy for me to take time off between jobs to work on the side-projects that keep my love of programming strong. I'm on my second full-blown sabbatical in 10 years, working happily on my own dime, bootstrapping a one-man game development 'studio'.
The main disadvantage is that I usually feel like I have to work to initially convince people that I'm good, and I do actively wonder whether I can get hired at certain companies.
Conversely, I've worked with lots of people with Ivy League degrees. All those I've met are still paying off the loans, even in their late 20's - even at 30 (but as loans go, the interest is pretty low and the payments are small compared to their income). But on the office grapevine, when someone mentions that X went to Yale or Y went to Princeton, it's obvious that this sets up a positive expectation. Colleagues and managers start off expecting that they're good. I find I have to build a good reputation over time _first_, before people start talking about me that way. Also, these people always know lots of people working at other top employers, where I generally have to go out and meet people cold to find new opportunities (which I don't mind).
So I'd say it depends on which of those trade-offs sounds more appealing to you, based on your personality and inclinations.
I have a high school education. I've also been an extremely motivated self-learner and voracious reader since early childhood. I'm one of those who learned programming on my own, from books, at age 12, and then spent most of my waking life over the next 8 years writing code and reading about software development. And yes, for me it is something I truly love from the core of my being, and will never, ever be just a job. Although somewhat introverted, I tend to be very enthusiastic and aggressive while job-hunting.
I started my software career at 20 and advanced very quickly during the dot-com boom. I just finished a 5-year stint at Microsoft. I don't think I could have landed a job at Google 5 years ago, but I've been contacted by their recruiters since leaving MS, and I believe I'd have a shot if I really poured myself into reviewing/studying the right subject matter.
As I see it, the main advantage of my route is that I've never had any significant debt, but I still made the senior dev salary and the bonuses. More importantly, this has made it very easy for me to take time off between jobs to work on the side-projects that keep my love of programming strong. I'm on my second full-blown sabbatical in 10 years, working happily on my own dime, bootstrapping a one-man game development 'studio'.
The main disadvantage is that I usually feel like I have to work to initially convince people that I'm good, and I do actively wonder whether I can get hired at certain companies.
Conversely, I've worked with lots of people with Ivy League degrees. All those I've met are still paying off the loans, even in their late 20's - even at 30 (but as loans go, the interest is pretty low and the payments are small compared to their income). But on the office grapevine, when someone mentions that X went to Yale or Y went to Princeton, it's obvious that this sets up a positive expectation. Colleagues and managers start off expecting that they're good. I find I have to build a good reputation over time _first_, before people start talking about me that way. Also, these people always know lots of people working at other top employers, where I generally have to go out and meet people cold to find new opportunities (which I don't mind).
So I'd say it depends on which of those trade-offs sounds more appealing to you, based on your personality and inclinations.