[sillysaurus2]

You misunderstand the world. The world largely doesn't care about skill or talent. It cares about credentials.

You've also thrown away your chance at meeting cofounders, because now your social circles are going to consist of workers who are largely not willing to give up their salaried jobs to take a chance, or they're in so much debt that they won't be able to even if they want to.

If you wanted to apply to YC with a cofounder, then they'll understand "we met in college." They won't understand "we worked together for 3 months at a random job." Relationships forged in college are much stronger than relationships found at work, so it's inherently risky to bet that you and your coworker won't get into a founder squabble and tank the company unless you've known eachother for years.

Good luck to you.

[Cardeck1]

Well yes, YC likes the "we met in college" and I see your point but it doesn't mean it's flawless. Stronger relationships? Yes, the only way? No. There is always a risk when it comes to startups. Just accepting that scenario only is stupid and misses a lot of potential out there.

If you believe that only a certain pattern can truly change the world you are mistaken. In fact, that is the crucial mistake every incubator is doing. True innovation almost always comes from unexpected places.

[argonaut]

This is just conjecture. It's a pretty big claim to make: that YC prefers people who met in college over people who worked together. From my experience working at a YC company and meeting the people in the network, I haven't discerned a disproportionate number of people who met in college vs. work that can't be simply explained by age.