Actually it's quite the opposite. Most PhD programs take candidates who has completed their BS/BA and now applying to the PhD program. It's NOT necessary to have a MS/MA before entering a PhD program. And having a masters does not necessarily increase your chance of admission either.
For those who can't tough through the PhD program, they graduate with what's called a terminal masters. It's quite common given the pass rate of PhD programs is unfortunately fairly low.
I'm not defending @treeman or @dozu888. I'm just saying that's how the doctoral program works(at least here in the U.S.).
And I'm in total agreement that higher education is very valuable especially in STEM fields! The kinds of doors and opportunities that are available to highly educated people are incredible. Provided you study the right thing and in a hot area. If you studied ancient medieval art history then maybe the prospects are not great..
Especially in areas of tech and finance. New grads in those areas can easily get $100K starting total comp(salary+bonus) with just a BS. And at certain tech companies(FANG) starting base can be as high as $125K for really good candidates(i.e. Stanford, MIT, Cal, CMU, etc.)
But even if you weren't in the best compsci schools, a BS in a STEM field nowdays can get $70-$80K right out of school easily.
In 10-15 years, most STEM will be in the $150-200K range. If they move into management even higher..
^this^
The PhD track is BSc/BA -> PhD from the outset.