While I appreciate the focus of most posts here, I want to take this opportunity to encourage any and all readers to achieve the highest level of education possible. Personally, I have a B.A. in Political Science. True, this is a liberal arts type degree, but its useful nonetheless. A four year degree of any type shows that you are educated, ambitious, and able to finish something that you've started. For younger (16-20) readers, I suggest going to college directly after High School if that floats your boat. Don't wait until later in life. Its much harder to finish later on, and while you are young, you can probably work your own business simultaneously. I firmly believe in this approach, and even for guys that aren't interested in turf or horticulture, I welcome them to my crews for summers, or part time if they are at local colleges. I have had guys study for masters degrees while plowing snow and cutting lawns.
The Hort degrees, LA degrees, some of the turf majors are all useful if you intend to specialize. However, don't rule out business and economics classes, accounting, or any other subjects. If you want to WORK in the green industry, especially for a large company, sure the degree will open some doors, but if you want to OWN a company, it may help to have wide open Horizons. For instance, down the road, my staff will have all of the necessary degrees as I determine to be useful. If you specialize, you will be locked in to those tracks. My point is that if you get a 2 year associate degree in turf or horticulture, what happens in 10 years when an opportunity comes along that requires a four year degree, or if you want to change careers. While the initial degree may be helpful, you will still be short a couple of years in the big picture.
How old are you anyway?