Thanks for the replies and opinions you guys. Personally, I think there are pro's and con's to both self learning and learning in an academic environment. Having a teacher, I would strongly believe is ideal. The reason being, you have someone guiding you, showing you, teaching you the thing's that may not be directly evident or clear to you as a self learning beginner.
You have somebody that can anticipate things that you may not have enough experience to see coming. Take learning an instrument for example. Having a teacher who will show you what is the best way to practice, being able to see where you could possibly make a mistake, and correct it before any such mistake is made. This is the main reason students get music teachers because it's about having someone skillful and experienced show you the things that self-practice would let you miss. Showing you the things you can do to be a better musician, the techniques and advice that are reflected by their years of familiarity and experience on the instrument.
The difference I would believe with an instrument compared to computing and programming is that, with an instrument, you can harm yourself by doing a technique the wrong way. The more you do it doesn't necessarily make it improve, in fact it can be the exact opposite and only hurt your technique in the long run. Bad habits would become ingrained in your playing from having repetitively done things incorrectly, this can become very difficult to correct down the road, which is why a teacher is essential in this case. They would be able to see that coming and help you avoid such problems before they become permanent.
With computing, I would think, if you're learning to program and the program doesn't work then your doing it wrong. And the more you do it wrong doesn't mean your acquiring 'bad technique' it means you don't know what you're doing and have to go back and figure out how to make it work. It may be similar to music. There might be many more ways then one to program, but like music, if it doesn't sound like it should off the sheet then its wrong.
I think with independent learning, it's possible if you can build some sort of path to progression. Because you don't really know what progression looks like from a self teaching standpoint. In a structured learning environment you can see progression because someone is giving you direct feedback and support. As a self learner the path is so wide and can split off in so many different angles, it may be hard to assess when you are failing from when you're succeeding, because you're completely left to your own devices.
But the way I see it. If I have to go about this myself I'm going to make the best of it either way. As an independent learner you may be disabled on some fronts, but you have the power of freedom, of a stress free work environment and of structuring your own path to learning. I figure if I can gather all the prerequisites to learning that I need, than steadily, slowly, and consistently the goal would be to gain a little amount of knowledge at a time. Not necessarily jump in blind and start trying to learn everything. Instead learn little pieces, small segments of information, but to learn them WELL. For every small process you learn, master it completely, and then move on to the next problem.
