Paul Perry - not all engineering vocations require a degree - e.g mechanics, CORGI engineers etc are apprenticeship and NVQ or some such qualifications.

And the point of the article is to high-light the need for vocational training - degrees are only useful if a) the graduate will contribute to an area in need of his/her new skills and b) if said qualification is from a good institute.

Catherine, London, UK

I don't understand the point of this article, the purpose of a college education is to find an entry level job within a white collar environment or to enter a profession like medicine or law.

To become a billionaire, one needs to be an owner, period. Bill Gates of Microsoft, Larry Ellison of Oracle Corp, and Michael Dell of Dell Corp were all self-made American billionaires w/o college degrees because of the magnitude that their self-owned business could grow in terms of both revenue and market cap.

Randy H, NYC, USA

Apprenticeships are excellent and we need more of these schemes and less red tape.

Red tape is what has strangled most of the apprenticeship schemes - the employers found it too much time, effort and expense to have all the paperwork, etc. to fill. The Government should cut the bureaucracy and allow people to provide apprenticeship schemes without it being a headache for themselves or the apprentices. Lack of experience is often what stops people from getting jobs and most people won't have the opportunity to get the experience, particularly in a paid role. It is too expensive to work for free - so really, what we need are apprenticeship schemes at various levels.

Mary Thomas, London,

I'm sure those seven "engineers" really did obtain degrees. I'm also sure that - unlike the vast majority of "real" engineers - they had the wit to realise that anyone who wants to be a millionaire, has to own their own business rather than just working 9 to 5 for someone else and complaining about how badly UK engineers are paid.

Paul Perry, Melbourne , Australia

Who does a degree to become financially rich (as opposed to rich in knowledge)? Surely if money is the only satisfaction you want in life, you leave school at 16 and start a business.

Lawrence, Manchester, England

Where is J.K.Rowling? Isn't she the classic case of a self made entrepeneur?

We have seven "Engineers" in the list. I assume that they are all registered and able to provide suitable credentials that qualifies them to use the title?

Malcolm C, Edmonton, Canada

it is not about going to University. it is about doing things you are interested in and good at. otherwise, nothing will make you successful.

yuning liang, Stevenage,

Chie's survivor bias argument is spot on. There must be hundreds of thousands of failed or moderately successful John Caudwells out there.
In answer to some of the other points raised:
Women are more risk-averse then men, and far less likely to start a business. There is also the minor inconvenience of reproduction to consider. Most of the men on this list are 50+ and have worked continuously for 30 years or more. Women tend to be better suited to professional jobs and are clustered in the middle income brackets. Around 20% of women now earn more than their male partner. It is no longer a 'man's world' - perhaps even the opposite is true!
Regarding the influence of a degree, my own feeling is that graduates face a greater opportunity cost when deciding whether to start a business, i.e. potentially sacrificing a well-paid career. For a 16-year-old school leaver with nothing to look forward to but 40 years in a factory, entrepreneurship is a much more attractive option.

Richard, London, UK

University often leads to "secure jobs". Secure jobs, by their nature, do not give the employees very much time to create their own business. Secure jobs often provide a salary which is thought to be comfortable, and the risk of leaving the job to undertake an entrepreneurial activity is therefore perceived as being too high.
On the other hand, an apprenticeship will often lead to setting up your own business (with the risks, and ups & downs this involves). These people are more likely to take the plunge and a greater proportion could end up on this "top 25" list.
So, a University degree might end up in a higher "average salary" over the whole of the UK, whilst not having a degree will produce more extremes: some very successful, some very unsuccessful.

Melvin, Palma, Spain,

Show's it is and will always be, a man's world.

Lauren, London,

Chie's comment makes no sense - this survey attempts to demonstrate that few people who go to university are disproportionately successful, it doesn't start from the assumption that their achievements don't count. In any case, how can anyone think that Britain, attempting to send half its young people to university, is biased against those who do? Certainly things like this survey aren't rare in their desire to praise those who succeed without it, but that's a countercultural reaction, not the mainstream view... [And yes, I went to university, because it was assumed that I would need to in order to succeed]

Neil, Warrington, UK

Only one woman!

Derek Butterfield, Langport, UK

One cannot become self-made unless they are rational. Science and Engineering "beat" physical reality into your head but busting your brain as an apprentice is good to. Most "education" is bunk. It seems to turn people into fearful and conforming crybabies who can't reckon their way out of a wet paper bag.

Mark, VA, USA

Seems like some of people on the list must have been seriously over-charging for their umm, services. Gordon Gekko was right then?

LairdDrambeg, Green Twp, U.S.A.

This analysis suffers from survivor bias (ignoring all the brilliant hard working people who didn't make money through bad luck, bad timing or for whatever reason). Also, what makes someone who went to university not self-made? Surely people who study hard and pass difficult exams and do not come from wealthy backgrounds (like myself and my family) are just as self-made as someone who is equally enterprising but chooses to go into an apprenticeship. This article displays the typical British bigotry against anybody who goes to university that the Asians do not suffer from.

Chie, Tokyo, Japan

James Dyson makes things and exports....that to me is the acme of entrepreneurial activity. Nor do you mention how many engineering apprentices of yesteryear are nor decorators or security guards because the industry has emigrated these shores.....many of these entrepreneurs used that window of opportunity created in the Thatcher Years before theestablished order of The City and Public Sector reasserted their hegomony over British society and the stasis of bureaucracy crushed dynamism and imposed conformity once more

TomTom, Leeds, England

all a person needs to be a successful businessman is to be shrewd, cunning, always thinking of making and very daring and a bit shameless too. No need of education( should be able to do some calculations though).

anu, auckland, NZ

I'm a stong beleiver that you create your own luck in life and anyone who has been so successful as to make sure a list I have the biggest admiration and resepct for.

Ben Collins, Sheffield, South Yorkshire

all a person needs to be a successful businessman is to be shrewd, cunning, always thinking of making and very daring and a bit shameless too. No need of education( should be able to do some calculations though).

anu, auckland, NZ

I beleive everyone can become rich, even a person on benefits.
My defenition of rich is the point when your investment income becomes sufficient to pay your day-to-day overheads.The key is to "pay yourself first". By that I mean, invest 10 %, or more if you can afford it, and learn to make do with the other 90%. This simple step creates a remarkable change. In stead of buying another coke, you think ' better invest the money' It also opens your eyes to opportunities to get better returns from your investment. So to sum up: Stop spending and start investing.

Leon, Swindon, UK.

No mention of Steve Morgan OBE, a true self-made man, at all. Hardly an accurate list.

RD, Wakefield, UK

Most of these guys made their millions before we had a tax hungry Labour government.
Try expanding a small engineering business in the service industry these days when the tax man 'holds' 20% of your invoices in CIS contributions,imposes costly regulation after regulation, I could go on and on.
Also these days you don't get any financial help when training an apprentice and if they are any good colleges are told to offer them degree courses to make up the magical 50% of school leavers in higher education as has happened to me after training and paying for my apprentice for 3 years.

N Morgan, York, UK

I think you cannot underestimate the influence of luck. This can often be the only difference between those who have "made it" and those who haven't, in spite of having worked equally as hard throughout their lives. Those who make a fortune often become too proud to admit that luck has played such an important role in their success, implying that those who haven't been as sucessfull simply haven't worked hard enough.

S Lord, Bolton,

By the way, Gordon Ramsey started out as a footballer with Glasgow Rangers FC before becoming a chef.

Marello, Coventry, United Kingdom

probably it's not only a question of education, class and manners but surely a question of luck and courage also .there are lots of educated people who can't find a safe and satisfactory job and people and people who just with their efforts can make un great things.if you are really willing to emprove yourself you don't just need a piece of paper but you must have the strenght to dare.i know some people that did that and now they're not as rich as those guys up there but they're happy.it takes time and sacifice...but it works sometimes.

flavia87, rome, italy

Sir Alex Ferguson has been very successful, but I wouldn't call him a self-made man or an entrepreneur. He has found something which he is very good at, but he's effectively an employee of a company and is rich because his employer pays him very well. It's different for say John Caudwell who created his business and wealth from nothing.

John M, Birmingham, UK

It is not possible to become an engineer without qualifying at degree-level so the engineers in your "vocational" list must either be degree-holders or technicians / mechanics who have exaggerated their technical skill. An engineer is a professional, degree-qualified and usually a member of a chartered institute e.g Institute of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE). A mechanic / fitter / technician is someone who trained as an apprentice on the shop floor and has either a HND qualification or City &Guilds.
There is a world of difference between the two so please make that clear instead of continuing the de-professionalisation of engineering that is so common in the media.

MB, Edinburgh,

John Cauldwell was just lucky in the right place @ just about the right time with a foresight that others never had.....before that he was allegedly selling dodgy motors & didnt have the money to buy a round of drinks in his local.......for every JC theres 1000's of others who failed miserably

D.Jenkins, Stoke,

Alec Ferguson? Gordon Ramsay? Eric Clapton? What´s your definition of an entrepreneur?

SB, Benrath, Germany

Yes, as every knighthood should go to the right class. I mean, really, why on earth should a tin badge go to some working class chancer who actually has a trade for a living and who's never even played one of those English crumpet toasting boys' games at Eton or Harrow?

What exactly do you mean by breeding?

Idle Bauble, Glasgow,

No Paul McCartney? A self made millionaire if ever there was one.

Mark, Bristol,

Sir,
I believe that we have to return to being a nation of shop-keepers. We cannot afford to become defeatist, parochial, withdrawn and insular. We have the experience of building up and administering a relatively successful empire, whilst dealing with multicultural groups. The only danger is that we may slide into misusing the military instead of treating our counterparts with equality and mutual respect. Our engineers, commerce, innovation are first class. Our temporary current weaknesses are our lack of linguistic skillls, and perceptions of a chauvinist disrespect for "lesser" cultures. The foundations are there, it just depends on making the best of our diverse peoples and skills.

SC, London, United Kingdom

After you are done throwing up, why don't you have a few sour grapes, I've heard they work wonders...

Gareth, Cape Town, South Africa

Education system is teaching how to be a good "employee", not "employer" i think that is what explaining why only 2 out of 25 top people are educated in universities. However, I want to stress education is important for every individual, but this has to be a base and then must be enhanced by practice and desire to wish something bigger.

Well, one day there will be my name in the list :)

Arthur Abdulin, London, United Kingdom

Sir Alec Ferguson: GUM CHEWER Number ONE"

No class. No breeding, and theymade him a," SIR"?

Makes one want to throw up, so excuse please .

Cheers!

J.L.W., Surrey, Canada