<p>This was my story more than 35 years ago. I enrolled in a highly regarded private university (not an Ivy, but a very good school). I made it through my freshman year. I was not terribly happy, but had decent grades.</p>
<p>When I returned for my sophomore year, I took an overload first semester, and I crashed and burned. I was miserable. I drank too much; I smoked too much weed. I came home for Thanksgiving and told my parents that I was dropping out of school. I had no plan; I was simply so unhappy that I knew that I couldn’t return.</p>
<p>Objectively, there really wasn’t anything wrong with the school. Perhaps I was too immature. Perhaps I had unrealistic expectations about how college would transform my life. I was likely depressed, though that wasn’t anything I, or my parents, contemplated at the time.</p>
<p>My parents listened to me and, rahter than trying to force me to go back, helped me devise a plan. By calling several people over the Thanksgiving break, I created an “internship” with my state assemblyman for the second semester. I returned to school and finished the semester, doing badly, but at least passing all my classes. I took a leave of absence. I started my internship, and enrolled in a couple of classes at a local university.</p>
<p>Once my head had cleared sufficiently, I completed some transfer applications, and ultimately transferred to the University of Wisconsin. I loved it, graduated with honors, went to law school and the rest, as they say, is history.</p>
<p>My advice to you–he may not be able to express why he is unhappy at school. In fact, he may not really know. But his plan isn’t a bad one. Let him take a leave of absence. If he can get a job, great; if not, see if you and he can come up with a creative alternative. Perhaps he can take a class at a local school in something of interest to him, just to keep him going to class.</p>
<p>He may return to school, or not. He may return to his school, or not. Right now, he needs a little distance to help him think more clearly about his options.</p>