I've read dozens of threads on here about degree vs no degree and the concensus seems to be that portfolio is most important/degree not required. What people tend to ignore or oversimplify is what is involved with making a good portfolio. A good portfolio requires good work, which requires good ability/understanding, which requires good development. Whether you go a more formally educated route or self-teach, it doesn't change that you need sufficient development to reach a competitive level. You can't be good without first becoming good. Would anyone hire me online with just a portfolio? Sure, but see above. How hard is it to make a living in graphic design 100% online/at home? Would it all be freelance jobs that I find on my own or are there legit work from home design jobs? It will be more difficult, and you'd have that much more to learn. Even if you had a solid 3-4 year a degree and a great portfolio to represent that training, all grads will still have a ton left to learn and be very rough around the edges in a professional sense. It's usually better to work full-time before going freelance, and further yet, it's a lot more difficult for someone to be mentored remotely at that stage in a career. When people go straight into freelancing, they are now self-teaching the whole professional side, compounding any potential issues. It's also just a lot more challenging to run a whole business while also trying to further grow as a designer, as opposed to just working as a designer. If simply trying to work remote full-time jobs, you'll also face more competition across a wider geographic area, meaning more people, higher bars, even aside from the mentorship aspect. All that said, nothing is impossible or guaranteed one way or the other, but if that's your desired or required path, your work will certainly be cut out for you, and you'll likely have to work that much harder versus alternative paths. More on reddit.com

You don't, you go into office like most other people. Remote are for people who are competitive. More on reddit.com

good luck chuck More on reddit.com

I've been in a similar spot, struggling to land remote design jobs, so I totally get your frustration. The key is to cast a wide net and try different platforms. Indeed and Zip Recruiter are good, but I've found that this one is more focused on remote work and tends to have better quality listings. More on reddit.com