[Tomminn]

This may be the case in computer science but is definitely not the case in science/philosophy. Not doing graduate school means effectively not doing science/philosophy. We sort of scoffed at everyone who dropped out at undergrad and thought they were obviously never serious about the field. I'm not saying the scoffing was correct, just that it was mystifying to us when someone actually good didn't go on to grad school.

[vehemenz]

Even in philosophy, it depends heavily on program and concentration. Universities are not consistent about which programs fall under the Philosophy Dept, and even if we look at "proper" philosophy at a highly-ranked university, there are some areas that are considerably less rigorous than others. I think you'll find more "Plan B" students there.

I could say a lot more on this and about the decline of academic philosophy, but you get my point.

[serverlessmom]

I wanted to chime in that the same is often true of mental health fields. Most upper level jobs in the mental health field necessitate earning a graduate degree.