It's a bit of a chicken-and-egg problem. He thinks degrees don't add value to smart people. However, those smart people are smart enough to know that nobody hires people without college degrees, and are thus in college.
I suspect you both know you're not representing Thiel's views correctly. What he's said is fairly non-controversial: 1) college is over-priced and 2) some people might be better off on a different track, such as starting a company.
