To run and own a business how much college is advised? Masters, bachelor?

True motivation:
I would like to expand on something that Ethan said, "to be passionate about the business you want to build". Motivation + determination + persistence are all critical ingredients in starting a successful business. If you are passionate about the business you want to build, you'll have more of these critical ingredients. As a human, the best motivation comes from the need to survive. If you have an existing job or another source of income (ie rich parents), these things can prevent the survival instinct from kicking in. Nothing provides better motivation than knowing that you are "all in" and don't have a fall back. A number of years ago, I started a successful computer services business. I believe I was successful because I was completely dependent on the income. As soon as I took on a consulting gig for a large bank, my motivation for the business died out quickly. You may be really passionate about coffee, so you are considering opening a coffee shop. However, if you want to start up a successful coffee shop, then you need to put yourself into a situation where your only source of income is the coffee shop. That is when you'll have the right amount of motivation to make it happen. I am not recommending to go into something without a proper financial plan that will give you enough time and money to generate an income. I do think you stand a better chance of success if its your own money you are investing.

Learn:
Starting a successful business requires a lot of trial and error and correction. 'Fail fast', as they say. You may have a great idea for a new business, but to turn that idea into a real business you'll need to make many adjustments. The faster you can learn from what doesn't work, the faster you'll know what does work.

Watch the TV show Shark Tank. Although the show is intended to entertain, the sharks consistently provide solid advice via questions to the contestants: 1. What is your plan? 2. What value are you adding to existing ecosystem? 3. What is going to protect you against the competition? 4. What are your sales? 5. What are your costs and margins? Note how frequently the sharks ask the contestants their motivation for the business. Note how the sharks get concerned when they see that the contestant does not rely on the business as their entire source of income.

Education:
I have learned very valuable things at school. All the business courses I have taken have helped me learn various aspects needed to be successful business. If you have the time and money to get an MBA, get it. Get it from the best business school you can get into. Observe how many successful businesses are started by students attending top schools like Stanford. Not all of us can attend Stanford, but all of us can learn just as fast. If you want to start a coffee shop, then work for one for a year. If you want to start a non-profit, then volunteer for one or more for a year. If you want to develop a new product, then find out who makes similar products and study their process. The best way to do this, is to go to work for them. The education you'll receive will be potentially as valuable as a MBA from a top business school. We learn best from doing.

A final word of encouragement:
If you think you might want to start a business, jump in and start it! If you find that it wasn't what you thought it would be or the motivation is just not there, then you learned a valuable lesson. Some of the best people that we hire at my current workplace are those that have attempted to start businesses and failed. These people know value an established company and understand the business better than most. You will respect yourself a whole lot more for trying to start a business versus thinking about it for years of regret working for someone else as a wage slave.

Hey Alex!

Running a business doesn't require any kind of degree, but the structured nature of higher learning can be very helpful in helping you absorb the knowledge you'll need to be successful. For you, deciding what kind of business you want to run will help you understand better what courses you may wish to take, and what level of technical know-how you'll need to build it.

If you look at successful entrepreneurs around the world, you'll find that there is a huge range of educational experience: some never finish grade school, and some have Ph.D.'s, but you'll also find that all of them are extremely passionate about the idea that they build their business around. That's the most important part - to be passionate about the business you want to build.

There's already been some good advice preceding my take on this - Ethan nailed it that successful entrepreneurs run the gamut education-wise. Passion, motivation, and discipline carry great weight. Some things you can't learn in a classroom and will inevitably learn through success + failure alike. Having started one business and worked on several start-ups, I would recommend taking some basic business classes (a full degree isn't required but does provide benefit). Learning how to negotiate, understanding supply/demand and building a demand-worthy service or business provide integral pieces. I've gathered a good deal of useful information from networks like CareerVillage.

Finding mentors and developing a successful network ultimately trumps a degree alone. However, you can often piece together a great network + find a mentor via school. There's no wrong answer here.

I have started my own business and my experience was that my Bachelor's Degree was helpful. However, my business did not succeed and the reason is that my education was insufficient to truly understand the challenges that must be overcome in pursuing such a venture. In order to hope to be successful in starting a business, I believe there is no substitute for real life experience. By that, I mean spending time working in an environment where you can learn from a successful business owner/leader will help you better prepare for eventually pursuing your own opportunity.

It is also critical to keep in mind that if/when you start a business, you should plan on working a TON of hours! Hopefully, this won't deter you from going after your dreams but you need to consider this reality and the impact it will have on the rest of your life (friends/family/hobbies).

I took a leave from my university to co-found a business, and only came back to finish my degree several years later (when the business was doing well enough that I could take significant time off without hurting it). The main benefit I got from college that was directly relevant to co-founding this business was the social and professional network. In fact, the people I co-founded it with were coworkers at a part time job I got through a referral from my on campus job, for very similar work.

I don't think any particular amount of college is needed or advised for starting a business, but I think being at college can help you out in a lot of ways, by introducing you to people and ideas. Especially if some of those people start businesses in fields related to what you study. Also it can certainly be useful to get someone with an MBA to start it with you, if you haven't studied for an MBA yourself.