Two paths to billions: Go to Yale, or drop out of college

Forbes is the leader in gawking at the richest among us. Its latest list of billionaires shows that they took a $300 billion hit in 2008 -- down 19 percent, to $1.27 trillion. More interesting than that is Forbes's analysis of some of the common traits of the members of their list. When it comes to education, billionaires are bi-polar -- either go to the best of the best or drop out.

If you want to make billions, one path appears to be to join Yale's Skull and Bones -- a secret society that includes a few politicians like John Kerry and the Bushes among its members. Forbes notes that hedge fund investor Edward Lampert, Blackstone (BX) co-founder Stephen Schwarzman, and FedEx (FDX) founder Frederick Smith are among the Skull and Bones billionaires.