Some internships require current enrollment in college. A degree just mean you are able to sit still and absorb the knowledge even you like or do not like it. If you did well, it shows endurance, perseverance and a seriousness of committment and possibly shows you know how to budget time.

As has been referenced earlier, if you want a job you need your resume in the hands of the hiring manager (obvious, right?). What are the most effective ways to do this?

1. You have interned for the company.
2. You know the manager.
3. You know someone who knows the manager and who vouches for you.
4. You attend any seminar / conference / job fair that puts you into direct contact with the manager.

As Washu mentioned, HR receives and rejects thousands of resumes before any manager gets a whiff of them. At larger companies they use "search" terms to create a score. This leads to resume padding, sometimes to ludicrous levels. Bypassing HR, if possible, dramatically increases your odds. Tying the above knowledge to a university.....

One overlooked aspect of education at a university is that they tend to have great connections to industry. Often they will have a resource center where they invite recruiters to interview. Typically the recruiters are either professionals who visit with hiring managers, or the managers themselves. Put all those big dollars you're spending into good use and attend these interviews!

The job resource center will usually host co-ops and internships as well. As I've mentioned earlier, if you spend some time with an employer you get some "face" time that no resume can supplant. If you're at these jobs learn as much as you can. Make as many friends and connections as possible. Even if you discover that the actual internship or company isn't exactly what you want to do, there's a good chance one of your connections will know a perfect match for you. They'll refer you through a friend or have direct contacts with a manager (which allows you to bypass HR).

Also, internships tend to pay money. I remember mine well. Instead of pouring concrete with the local construction company for a summer, I was in air-conditioned bliss, making 3x that salary and following my educational goals.

Anyways, best of luck!

Worth it a lot. I'm currently doing Information Systems, and I'm planning someday to get a BS in CS. Every teacher recommends. But CS is something that you can learn at home. Just google CS books, read, understand the concepts and implement them.