Ruby is definitely in high demand, high enough for some less established businesses (I mean less established than like Google or Twitter) to potentially hire you without the degree, though you will most likely get a starting salary that is less than your degree-wielding rivals out there. However, you're going to need a portfolio to nail down a salary job like that. So, once you finish, you need to start freelancing or working on your own projects to develop a competitive portfolio. Competitive doesn't really mean industry leading, but you gotta put more into it than some Indian or Filipino that claims they can do it for a couple hundred bucks, as that's what we have to compete with in a remote-able industry.
It's going to be very difficult to get freelance jobs until you have a portfolio as well, though not impossible, and you'll most likely have to take your first projects pro bono or at a very cheap rate to secure your leads. This is just part of the process. I build web sites, and the first year of portfolio building, I charged $300-500 for a site. Now, I charge $1,500 minimum and can even land some up to $15,000 for the budget. It was still very hard to secure leads during that first year, and it helped immensely to know entrepreneurs who needed sites and could give me work because of our rapport for this portfolio-building phase.
That said, I don't think it's the best way to go, though it works. The absolute best way is to come up with a money-making business concept yourself and apply your skills there. You can present it as a case study with proven figures to future clients, but if you accomplish this, you'll be far more interested in creating your own product ideas than working to help make someone else way more money than you could be making. You'll work less and make more money than you ever will programming for others. If you haven't read The 4-hour work week by Tim Ferris, check it out. Product is far greater than service when it comes to making money, and you'll have way more control over how you live your life if you can come up with a good program concept to sell to people yourself, spend a year creating that instead of spending a year working for pennies to make yourself a portfolio that is viable in a competitive job market.
