This kind of hippiesque, free-spirit approach sounds fine for MIT-level students, but I have my doubts that this model can be effective beyond those highly driven individuals.<p>Also, while I agree that you don&#x27;t need a college degree to be a successful programmer or business person, most other science professions require some sort of structured learning environment and equipment to effectively teach students.<p>Maybe I&#x27;m dumb and this professor is onto something.  She has a degree in material sciences, so perhaps she knows first-hand that all the knowledge you need to learn advanced chemistry can be gained by someone with a garage and aspirations.