I think the HN community in general tends to underrate the value of college in developing the kind of soft skills (project management, playing well with others, critical thinking, learning how to study something new, writing & presentation skills) that make a real difference in how good an employee/manager/co-founder can be. I would never hire anyone without at least a few years college experience - even if they kick ass at one or two things, they would probably not be as prepared to develop into new roles and skills.
Also, college gives you the opportunity to engage with subjects and people outside of your current interests/peers - whether or not that has a direct impact on your career/life, it will likely make you a more empathetic, tolerant and interesting human being.
It's not unreasonable to expect an average 8% return on your money if you put it in the stock market and hold it there for the next 50 years, particularly if you just track indexes.
So assuming an 8% return, and no inflation, how much would you need to live on 72k a year? 900k. Oh, wait, you're going to pay capital gains tax. At current rates (these will change) you need around 85000. That means 1.062 million.
Inflation exists. So, let's say that averages 5% a year. No problem, you make a percentage return too. You're just going to have to live on a real value of 7.6% return on investment, which moves your starting bankroll up to around 1.12 million.
You're going to want more than that, though; medical expenses, buying a house or car, college for children etc. will clean you out.
But let's say none of that applies to you. If you start working at 18 making 100k a year and using 72k of it to live on each year, after taxes you're in debt already.
So, cut back on the living expenses and say you live in a small efficiency and use about 2k a month. You can conceivably save 40-50k a year this way. It'll only take you 23 years or so to make the amount you need if everything goes perfectly, you never have a girlfriend or go out to bars and you're conscientious about saving.
Now, this time can be lessened if you have a matching 401k or something, but the return will be lower as well and there are liquidity issues there, so I didn't have that included as an option.
So do the math yourself on cost benefit. Use average salaries as a guide and recognize that money is only a small part of the reason people go to college.
A degree is more about access than knowledge, TBH. Go to a good school, find some professors working on really cutting-edge shit, and work for them. That will give you a better education than just about anything else. If you're just taking classes, any non-Ivy school is going to give you the same education you could get for free online (assuming you really put the effort in).
If only that were the case, it would be a much better investment.
Also, most kids go to college with the mindset that they're there to have fun. If people actually attended college with the intent of getting a job and didn't major in basket weaving (art history majors I'm looking at you) then this figure would be much more likely.
I ride a small motorcycle for transportation. That's 200 dollars for 6 months of insurance, and about 50 per month in gas. In the winter I take the bus, which is 70/month. My phone bill is 40. Hydro and internet are split amongst 7 people (me and three others upstairs, 3 downstairs). 15 every two months for internet, 70 every two months for hydro.
300 rent 200 food 40 phone 70 transport 7 internet 35 hydro 652 total, leaving a couple hundred for emergencies and fun. Actually, neither of those, since I'm in school right now and don't make any money. I pretty much break even each month with my part time job that makes 150 a week.
I realize that many of the opportunities I have are not available to everyone. I'm particularly lucky with my roommates and the house - as run down as it is, no one bothers you about anything, ever, and everyone contributes to keeping it tidy.
I don't find it difficult, but I can certainly see that some people might. In fact, even I might have a tough time dealing with it once school is done. I'd like to dress nicer than I do and my own cooking is getting pretty tiresome. I also like to do road trips, and haven't been able to do one in quite a while.
PS, I live in Victoria.