Why Gen Z Is Ditching College to Build Startups Instead—And It's Actually Paying Off

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Earlier this summer before his freshman year at Stanford University was set to begin, Sebastian Tan read Peter Thiel's "Zero to One." The book changed the trajectory of his life.

Instead of enrolling in classes that fall, Tan applied for Palantir's (NASDAQ:PLTR) Meritocracy Fellowship, a semester-long, paid program that offers attendees a shot at a full-time role. He earned a spot and deferred his Stanford enrollment to the fall of 2026.