4E, it is a fair argument that college may not be necessary to build job skills. It is often true, but it is also true that it is often an easy path to a comfortable job. If someone has in mind a specific job not requiring college, whether in office or in plumbing, gezunte heig!
The long-term job trend is that remaining jobs are either in knowledge economy – design, analytics, running large businesses, or service jobs/gigs and everything in between is ether automated or outsourced to China. Not many jobs left in shoemaking, small stores, etc. I myself run a small business and it is difficult to compete with the big ones.