<p>Com. College: Positives you listed - negative would mostly be public opinion. Sometimes the educators are so bad that they would be better with the gap year and self-study. It can really be a crap shoot though. There are many educators at CCs that are far better ‘teachers’ than many professors at top flight colleges.</p>
<p>Gap year - negatives would also be a lack of staying ‘sharp’ in terms of academics. It can also turn out that things are no better for you after the GAP year than they were before, thus wasting a year of education or earning.</p>
<p>‘4 year school’ - Tend to be overpriced depending on a multitude of factors. For some students, the ‘college atmosphere’ is a distraction from learning and they would be better off at Com. College until they mature a bit.</p>
<p>Vocational school - this is an entirely different animal altogether. If a trade is really what you prefer (and thank God for those who do), then this is easily the best option. You cannot really compare this to the others as most that I know who went to Vo-Tech had ZERO interest in going to any sort of a degree issuing institution. I would take issue with your last bullet as you cannot include anywhere near a comprehensive list of careers that would not be advanced via Vo-Tech.</p>