<p>Been there.</p>
<p>In hindsight... the best choice my son ever made in his life was to drop out of his elite east coast LAC and go to work. I have to note that wasn't his full intent - when he quit school he was talking about traveling to Nepal. He just happened to fall in love with the first job he managed to get after he finally got off the living room couch. But he needed to figure that out himself, parental nagging/suggesting was a waste.</p>
<p>It wasn't the easiest choice -- after 2+ years working and supporting himself, my son now wants to finish his degree and is applying as a transfer to various schools. The financial aid picture isn't so good in this situation. Based on my agreement with him, he will have very limited financial help from me. The National Merit Scholarship is lapsed & long gone. No one cares about SATS any more - it is his uneven college grades that make a difference. </p>
<p>But I saw a radical change of personality within a matter of months. My son went from being a drifting, unfocused kid committed to nothing in particular to a driven, conscientious, mature, responsible, and much happier young man.</p>
<p>I don't know what your background is, but my son was also put off by the "spoiled, white kids" at his college and I don't think its a matter of race or finances, its a matter of attitude. So 10 rich white kids who go to a 3rd world country on some sort of service internship might be a lot more compatible with what your son is looking for in life than a college full of kids from a variety of backgrounds whose dominant interest seems to be getting drunk on Friday nights. </p>
<p>My advice: draw very clear lines about what you as a parent are willing to support financially and what you are not -- put it in writing if you have to -- and then back off and let your son live his life. Some kids just wallow in self-pity and are not pro-active enough to do anything about it. Others take a plunge. But your son is expressing the kind of angst that is something he needs to work out for himself. What he is really saying is that he is looking for meaning in his life and despairing of finding it in his current situation -- a parent can't supply these answers. </p>
<p>As much as it may frustrate you as a parent if your son makes what seems to be a bad choice now, you need to understand that the alternative could be your paying an extraordinarily expensive tuition at the present school for the next 3 years to support your son drifting along, only to emerge with a degree that means nothing to him, and no idea of what he wants to do next. A change can take him on a different and possibly much harder track, but it can also be an important step toward adulthood and his future career.</p>
<p>My son doesn't have a college degree and doesn't even know where he is going to end up next year, but he knows exactly who he is, what his capabilities are, and where his career track is taking him. Every dollar he spends on his education from here on out is a dollar that is going to be utlized for maximum benefit. </p>
<p>If you want more info you can PM you and I will tell you what the limits are that I set with my son and where he went to work.</p>