...remember those degrees only teach you a small fraction of what you need to know out there.
Yes, indeed. If you think a degree provides job training, you've already failed. Go take a year off and backpack through Europe or Southeast Asia, you will learn a lot of what you need to know out there. When you come back, reconsider your options, and if what you want to do is learn a lot about something and grow from the sheer joy or learning and knowledge, go get a degree. They're not for everybody and it's possible to live a fulfilling life and contribute constructively to society without one.
And, it really doesn't matter what degree. Some of the most accomplished people I've worked with in the software industry have a degree in physics or English literature. Most of the good programmers, though, have a CS degrees because that's what tickles them most. I've worked with a few people without degrees: someone needs to answer the phone at the front desk and someone needs to be on-call in the IT department.