I did make an exception for certain subjects. And no, I went to a good college and I enjoyed the experience. Some of which, such as working with 600 MHz NMR spectrometers and the whole plethora of chemistry laboratory equipment, is very much not the sort of thing one can learn at home. However, such degrees are not the norm. I also studied mathematics, and though many of my professors were quite excellent I have little doubt that motivated self-study with the appropriate books would have produced an equally valuable education in the subject. And that's probably the case for the average course of study. Computer Science? English? Foreign languages? Linguistics? Astronomy? Art? History? Economics? Environmental science? Psychology? These are things that are well within the grasp of self-study, especially today.