Just curious, did your kids start college with a clear and definitive goal of what they wanted to do? I typically think that factors in a lot. I went to CC because it was cheap and I was poor and could work while going to school, but also I had no idea what I wanted to do until my sophomore year of college.
My oldest daughter (by quite a bit) thought she wanted to get a pharmacology phD, but that dream evaporated after a year of classes and then pivoted to nutrition and then after 2nd year pivoted to BS-RN - which the way they run those programs meant much of a do-over. She has done great with her RN - made it through much of COVID as an ICU RN - not fun. We are quite proud of her.
Her (now) husband started as a freshman with no direction. Dropped out for a few years and worked his butt off with 3 jobs. When he started dating my daughter, going back to school was a minimum requirement set by her (you go girl). He had to pay his own way and did a great job of using community college credits to earn a BS at a big state school in a very $$ efficient manner. One of his jobs was running a home for disabled young adults and when he came back to school chose medical administration from the beginning, but by this point, he must have been 25 and had a clear idea of what he wanted to do. He got an entry-level job at a large med insurance company and worked his butt off, got several promotions and now runs a team of analysts. We are quite proud of him too.
Our son is the Rambo of academics. He is a voracious, full-contact learner. He set his sights on UofChicago and made it. He was thinking theoretical physics, applied mathematics, finance or pre-law. After his first year he declared software engineering and pre-law double major. Nearing the end of his second year with top marks in every class. He will likely go to a top 5 law school after this, but has talked about working in the software industry a few years first. We are quite proud of him.
Our youngest (daughter) is finishing her senior year of high school. I will not repeat her story here (I have shared some on some mental health threads) but she has overcome much to have EARNED the opportunity to pick a good college. She has it down to four - 2 mid-sized private, 2 large state schools (out of state). She has no idea what she wants to be, but as she battled out of her own personal prison with great courage and resilience, I won't be surprised if she surpasses the whole bunch when she finds her passion. We are quite proud of her too.
It has been far from a linear path for any of our family - my wife and my academic paths are also full of twist and turns, highs and lows. None of this has been easy or inexpensive. But, my wife and I are very blessed to share this journey with our 3 great kids (and a great SIL).
