Seniors not going to college

[hollyhock2]

Anyone else have a senior who is doing something other than going to college after graduation? Gap years, trade schools, working, etc.? The college acceptance thread on the college board is lovely, but my kid doesn't fit on that list. Wondering if I'm the only one.

Mine isn't sure yet. Right now he is exploring flight school.

 

[shelleysboys]

I was just thinking about this... my son is a junior right now. But I don't think he will be going to college directly.  Gap year(s) will be good for him.  I look forward to seeing what others are doing!

[Ggg]

Let me just say I get it, get what you are talking about the stigma that one must do college right out of high school.

Mine too is on the fence.  Still he has not took the ACT or SAT.  He is in an apprentice program for Audio Engineering going on his 2nd year with a large 3 campus church which plans to higher him full time upon graduation.  We are hard pressed to find a program that will compliment his skill set.  Very few hands on programs available.  He is kicking around getting an IT associate degree while working just to have a degree and to stay out of debt.  His sister(has her MBA) and him own a media business(websites, photography, videography) which has a steady growth pattern.  For him the challenge is real.  For us we want him to follow the path he feels God has for his life, we tell him to stay out of debt and pick a career that you will be happy in.   We have also told him you are only 17 you can take a gap year and work.  

That being said the sad thing is most people think you are a failure because you are not attending a 4 year college, but what we have seen is this...many young adults are not following their God given gifted path because of pressure to choose a college.  Many of those young adults come out of college with no work experience(so they are unable to get a job in their field of study) in debt of upwards 60k are forced to pay back student debt so they wind up in the job force with low pay and not even in a job of their choice.  So in my opinion Epic fail. 

Nothing wrong with a student taking gap year, going to tech school or working in a job they fell called to do.

BTW our daughter had scholarships through undergrad and grad school, so she does not have student debt, but that is not always the case and honestly until he decides to test we have no idea what he can get.  And we will not force the issue, again some/most feel we are not doing right by not making him.  He does attend MU online high school and carries straight A’s so we let him decide.  And that is not to say we don’t pray and discuss his future 🥰

 

 

Edited December 23, 2019 by Ggg

[Lori D.]

3 hours ago, Ggg said:

...the sad thing is most people think you are a failure because you are not attending a 4 year college...

Sad in another way is the percentage of students who DO go to college, yet do NOT complete it (often because it was a poor match to begin with, or due to not having the finances to complete a degree) -- and now have debt but no degree, so NO chance of getting out of the entry-level-pay job treadmill. According to the College Atlas website, 30% of college freshmen drop out after their first year at college. And overall, 70% of Americans study at a 4-year university, but less than 2/3 graduate with a degree.

Our experience: No gap year right after high school -- but also no direct to 4-year university here, either. And no knowing for sure what they wanted to do until they were into their 20s.

Two DSs here who went from homeschool high school graduation to community college. Both were older before they started to really know what they wanted to do -- DS#1 was 25yo and DS#2 was 22yo before they had a strong sense of what they wanted to do. From my signature, you can see their different paths, but in more detail, here it is again:

DS#1 completed an AAS in digital film/video production, then a BA in General Christian Studies, and is now more than halfway through a BS in Mechanical Engineering (the first 2 years were again at the community, and then he transferred to the local 4-year university 2 semesters ago).  He enjoys college and is geared for college.  

DS#2 got 2 years into a 3-year AAS in Interpretation for the Deaf, then realized he did not want to work in that field, so he took a gap year and worked full time, and then did a 9-month AmeriCorps commitment with a trails conservation organization, which then led to his current seasonal work as a wildland firefighter. He is still casting about and trying to figure out  what he wants to do as his off-season career job. He has always disliked anything "school-like", and is only willing to attend college if it will help him get to where he wants to go career-wise. So far, other than his intensive EMT certification coursework last spring, college has not been needed for the "career road less traveled" that he has chosen. 😉 

Just sharing our experience to say that direct-to-4-year-university is great for some, but is not for all. Also -- below I'm linking the entire section from PAGE 6 of the pinned "College Motherlode" thread at the top of the college board, with threads that might help you all not feel quite so alone -- because you're not alone in having students pursuing alternatives to 4-year college. 😉

 

ALTERNATIVES TO COLLEGE

Overview discussions
Alternative college options
What do you do if dear child’s standardized test scores are *tragic* (sympathy + suggestions for alternatives to 4-year college)
Help me brainstorm potential non-four-year college marketable skills
Helping children choose college/career major (discussion about changed nature of college and the working world)
An epiphany about college attendance (students not able/interested pushed into attending college)
Myth of the successful college drop-out (spirited debate and real-life experiences on both sides of the argument)
Can we discuss the relative merits and drawbacks of tuition-free Community College?

Non-college bound
Cross-post: High school for the non-college-bound (what's essential? what to skip?)
If your children finished high school but didn't go to college: what did they do instead?
Non-college bound students
Mom diploma good enough for non-college-bound student?
Links to Websites for non-college-bound high schoolers?
Trade-bound vs. college-bound9
Resources for high schoolers going straight into jobs? (no college first)
Careers that don't require college
NOT planning for college (options? how would that change high school?)

Skilled trades / Technical School or Associate Degree
Pros and cons of getting an Associate's Degree
College dreams vs. technical school reality: trying to reconcile my edu-snobbery
Stories and statistics about Blue Collar homeschoolers
Scholarships for skilled trades
Mike Rowe and trades
Companies offering training for entry-level jobs

Edited December 23, 2019 by Lori D.

[Lori D.]

3 hours ago, Ggg said:

... Still he has not took the ACT or SAT...

I do recommend getting at least 1 test score (either ACT or SAT) knocked out before graduation and to have that "in your back pocket" -- those scores can sometimes lead to scholarships at the Community College. (It did for DS#1 !). 

And while you *can* wait and take it after high school graduation, it is SO much easier on the student to take it while still in the "mindset" of school subjects and in the habit of doing daily math.

Edited December 23, 2019 by Lori D.

[TracyP]

My oldest is a junior. She plans to have an associate's degree by the time she graduates high school, but she has no interest in continuing to a 4 year college. She has a job working at a farm and she absolutely loves it. She would like to take over the business as the current owners are getting older.

I am wholeheartedly behind her pursuing this even though it was very much not in the original plan. I feel strongly that 4 year college is not for everybody. I also feel like life is too long to have a job you don't enjoy. There is no doubt that my dd loves what she is doing. If she can manage to make a living at it, hurray for her. If, otoh, it doesn't work out or she changes her mind later, college will still be there.