You need a degree in just about anything these days, especially if it requires any form of state licensing. And the laws are different from state to state. You can try being a PI without licensing. Then find yourself in jail.

I don't know where Jaxon gets the 'spoiled brats' mentality from. At 68, his generation wasn't on the hook for $50K for a 2-yr degree. Back in the 1960s colleges weren't corporate controlled and a 2 year degree at most any community college (not including the Ivy leagues) was pretty easy to afford, or at least manageable . If your parents hadn't saved up for it, you could work a part time job to pay for the classes in most cases. There also weren't a bunch of federal student loans back then either, because they weren't really needed. I remember my mom telling me how the classes she took cost her around $45. That wasn't per class, that was per semester. And that's the way it remained for the most part through the 1970s. It wasn't until the 1980s that the cost of tuition really began to sky rocket and more companies started requiring all their employees to have a degree. Back then most people who went to college had their parents saving for their college tuition all through their elementary years so that by the time they got to college age all or most of their tuition was covered. And savings and bonds actually earned some decent interest, making it much easier to save. Today, even if you do save consistently from the minute your kid is born, by the time he reaches college age you'll be lucky if you've covered 20% of the cost. But that's why we have the federal government to hand out student loans like candy. Doesn't matter what your credit score is or your GPA, as long as you meet their minimum requirements - which is basically be at least a certain age and legally able to receive federal money, and be registered with selective service if you're male - then you qualify. Even if you already owe a small fortune in loans you still qualify every year.

I'd like to see a 23-yr old buy a restaurant these days. Not gonna happen unless he's already got money from wealthy parents.

I must have been lucky then as I got my 4 year degree without student loans and walked out with zero debt. But then I got into college with the almost 4.0 GPA from high school so I got scholarships for the first two years and then interned at companies during the summer and worked two jobs during the semester. Worked my butt of to get it done, but that's how I do things even now.  Also, although it's not common for 23 year olds to get businesses, I have seen some people in their 20's with such razor-sharp instincts, they do have their own businesses and driving BMWs they've paid for on their own dime. It's all about what you see as a priority and seeing what it takes to get there. I know I spent my 20s doing management-level work and having to deal with employees that resented getting direction from a skinny kid that looked 17 but knew his stuff.