He honestly didn't know how much a degree might help in Eli's chosen field. It's not like academia, where James had to have at least a master's and a certain number of published works before he could even consider getting a tenured position. Even at the university, he had to teach, write, and continue to do research in his field to maintain that tenure. That was a big part of the reason he started teaching high school instead. There was no pressure for him to keep adding to the body of research, no pressure for continued publications.

It seemed to him that for someone in the arts, it's practical experience that matters more than a degree.

But he couldn't help smirking at that last thing. "The man of your dreams? Really?"