[Nadya]

The end result of college is to get a job. Software development, if you develop software that people are willing to pay and use for, is a job.

If you can skip a college step and go directly to Go and collect your $200...

Programming is a rare field where this can be a viable option. A degree can offer a faster understanding (having a teacher is often faster than being an autodidact) as well as job security (a degree has weight on a job resume).

There is a lot that can be said for work merit alone. If you have a portfolio full of successful projects that many people use - you're going to look better on a resume than someone with a degree and the only projects in their portfolio are school projects with limited or no real world success.