There is NO need to jump into an expensive college if you have no idea what you want to do. Wasting money like that is just crazy. I have a few friends who took 1-2 years off before college to work and figure things out and now they found what they're passionate about and are going to college.

Sounds like you have a really good outlook and I so appreciate you sharing it.

I guess what I would say instead would be if you don't know what to go for, there is nothing wrong to go to community college for 2 years to get your gen-eds taken care of while you maybe get some work experience/volunteer in a variety of places to get a taste for what you want.

We are now required to attend college whereas our parents, going to college was what some people did. That puts pressure to attend college straight out of the gate at 18, with like you said, without a clear idea of what you wanted to do.

After my undergrad degree I took 2 years off, worked for one year, then moved to Spain for a year. Those 2 years gave me a break I needed.

When I have kids, if they do not know the direction they want to go, I'd definitely encourage them to do the same and take some time to see what they want to do. We get so set in our ways in education that it makes it hard to actually see what we want to do because we don't even know what the real world is!

I feel lucky that I knew what I wanted to study and that it was practical and relevant. However, my 'Submit a Payment' still gives me a little knot in my stomach each time I pay as well. I feel your pain and I think it's such a valid point for future generations. Thank you, Ryan!

The one piece of advice I would give is for new students to truly think about what they want to study. I say this because so many people to go college now just to go to college, and that is fine honestly if mom and dad are flipping the bill.

I left college with an immensely large chunk of money to pay back, almost $75,000. That included 2 years of grad school that was a waste of $$, but hindsight is 20/20.

Financial aid may seem great and that refund check at the end of the month might be amazing, but when you get out of college with a degree that everyone else in the world has, and you cannot find a job. Those $700 a month payments are going to make it seem like a bad idea (I feel this way everytime I click on 'Submit a Payment'

So that means my wife and I will live in an apartment for a much longer time, something that I regret.

Would I give up college for that? Probably not but I would think twice about signing on the dotted line for everything.

There is NO need to jump into an expensive college if you have no idea what you want to do. Wasting money like that is just crazy. I have a few friends who took 1-2 years off before college to work and figure things out and now they found what they're passionate about and are going to college.

Sounds like you have a really good outlook and I so appreciate you sharing it.

I guess what I would say instead would be if you don't know what to go for, there is nothing wrong to go to community college for 2 years to get your gen-eds taken care of while you maybe get some work experience/volunteer in a variety of places to get a taste for what you want.

We are now required to attend college whereas our parents, going to college was what some people did. That puts pressure to attend college straight out of the gate at 18, with like you said, without a clear idea of what you wanted to do.

After my undergrad degree I took 2 years off, worked for one year, then moved to Spain for a year. Those 2 years gave me a break I needed.

When I have kids, if they do not know the direction they want to go, I'd definitely encourage them to do the same and take some time to see what they want to do. We get so set in our ways in education that it makes it hard to actually see what we want to do because we don't even know what the real world is!

I feel lucky that I knew what I wanted to study and that it was practical and relevant. However, my 'Submit a Payment' still gives me a little knot in my stomach each time I pay as well. I feel your pain and I think it's such a valid point for future generations. Thank you, Ryan!