<p>A friend of ours has a HS senior, very mathematically inclined, who's pursuing this opportunity.
Peter</a> Thiel Gives Whiz Kids $100K To Quit College, Start Businesses | Fast Company</p>
<p>"It sounds like a reality show pitch: The legendary Facebook investor, PayPal founder, and thorn in the side of college deans everywhere announces what happens when 24 people, picked to live among mentors and innovation experts, stop going to school and start getting real--in business."</p>
<p>Obviously, it's a very long shot, but do you know of anyone who went to this program, and what was their experience?</p>
<p>While there is plenty of hype about “encouraging students to drop out of college”, it really is not that much of a risk in terms of education.</p>
<p>At many colleges, withdrawing in good academic standing leaves the door open to returning automatically, or with much less competitive admission hurdles than entering otherwise (though there may be time limits). So if the entrepreneurial venture fails, the student just goes back to school. If it is successful, then there may not be a need to return to college, at least not for a while.</p>
<p>If the student is still in high school, doing such a thing could be an interesting “gap year” activity that is fully funded. But if the entrepreneurial venture fails, then the student can just apply to colleges the usual way – and have a rather interesting extracurricular activity to add to his/her application. Of course, plenty of other students do not go immediately to college after high school; some do less flashy activities like more “ordinary” work or military service, but go to college afterward.</p>