I told my kid if she wanted an art degree, dhe was going to have to pay for college on her own. Profession matters. I’m with your dad’s thinking there, as in, i would’t pay for, what i call, useless degree, esp for some out of state college.
Out of curiosity, why does profession matter, esp if you have the means to pay for college?
Our world needs people who are talented in art and make it their career. It’d be a gloomy place without it.
Profession doesn’t mean a hoot to me TBH. I’m equally as proud of my finance, doctor, and permaculture farming kids. I can’t fathom only supporting them if they do what I deem is worthy.
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Three examples that may mean nothing or may mean something.
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My sister was an art major at a private u that was a lot more expensive than an in-state public. After graduation she had a few shows in NYC, Bahamas, Jamaica, and elsewhere but was unable to become a “professional” artist, and ended up becoming a public school art teacher. All worked out well.
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I once worked with a young woman who went to Duke and became a public school teacher, and was happily employed. Because of the connections she made at Duke, after a few years as a public school teacher, she accepted a job offer from a former Dukie at a tech company and was soon promoted to earning a 6figure salary teaching corporate buyers how to use the gui. This is a connection she would not have made had her parents decided it was not worth paying for her to attend Duke to learn how to be a teacher.
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A high school classmate earned an Arts degree from a private school. After being unable to land his “dream” job, he ended up with a low paying position with the Smithsonian Museums. He admitted feeling a little embarrassed by earning so little in a relatively expensive Washington DC, but a few years and a few promotions/raises later, he loved his job (and the people he meets and thus the crowd he hangs out with as a result of the job) despite still feeling underpaid.
I admit everyone’s mileage may vary. But life often presents opportunities if we watch out for them.
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How about art teacher in a local school district, would that not be viable profession? In my extended family we have someone with an undergraduate and graduate degree in Art and has been working in a museum as an art/exhibit curator.
Maybe you won’t make the big bucks, but seems like a good profession if you can find work. No clue about that piece.
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Different people make different choices. Its a big reason why there are different options available.
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I wanted my kids to major in anything they wanted. One picked theater (which then became art history, which then became history) and the other engineering. Only difference to me was how much debt they could take on. I didn’t want the theater/art history major taking on a bunch of debt she would struggle to repay. She does have some debt, and she will struggle, but hopefully not too much.
The engineer is doing just fine. She could have borrowed more and been fine, but she actually didn’t need to borrow more because of scholarships. Oh, the irony.
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Sure, if they can sustain themselves. Most kids do not think of going to art school to become an art teacher. They think they will become famous artists. So, i choose not to fund that thinking.
My dad has an undergrad and grad degree in art. He’s a wonderful painter, but was unable to provide for his family as an artist. Went back to school and got another degree, which he used to make a living and painted on the side. He says art degrees didnt make him the artist he is. So i dont know how others have fared with degrees in art, i just go by our family’s experience.
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I’d be afraid my kids would resent me for the rest of their lives. As I’ve told them, I showed them the path, but they’ll have to walk the path. And I’ll support them no matter what they choose, except for criminal activity of course. 
If they make bad choices along the way, then they’ll figure it out like your father smartly did. That’s how we were raised.
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I’’ve always been honest with my kids. Come to me for advice, and you will not get a sugar-coated response. Kids in this country have the freedom to choose anything they want. It’s also my choice to say i will support or not. A 17 yr old is often times unrealistic. A 50k a yr for art school? I can’t justify that. As it happened, at least for us, she’s a brilliant student. Ended up not applying to any art schools. Hasn’t shown any interest getting a minor in art either. I wonder what she would have done had i said whatever you want, i will pay.
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She probably would have gotten a job with an investment bank or start up making north of $200k (before stock options). That seems to be the most common path noted here. 
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Haha maybe. From your mouth to God’s ear. She’s a high school senior, so she has a long way to go but with some guidance hopefully she will be ok.
My FIL is an artist (MFA/PhD) and was chairman of the art department of a midwestern university. He raised a family of five and put them all through college (only one through his university). They struggled a bit in the early years, especially as my MIL didn’t work while the kids were little and she was working on her PhD in American Studies, but they always had a roof over their heads and food on the table. He is retired and still producing. All five kids are quite proud of their father’s work and loved living a life of museum-going and immersion in the art world and academia, not to mention enjoying a home filled with drawings, paintings, and sculptures. It was never about money.
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We have a fair number of kids at school who definitely resent their parents due to their parents imposing their choices on them. Some insist of a specific college - or type of college (like religious). Some insist on majors. Some insist on only boys getting to go, girls are supposed to stay home until marriage. Some insist on the military first. Some won’t pay a dime and the kids are stuck. Some insist their kids not go to college at all because it will ruin them. Some insist their kids go to college even though they’d prefer a different path. It’s certainly not the majority of parents, but there’s a group out there who feel their kids must do X or they’re “wrong.”
When finances are involved, I definitely try to help the kids see that aspect from their parent’s point of view. Finances truly dictate a lot when it comes to choices for many. When it isn’t, all I can do is sympathize - and totally understand when their relationship isn’t the same as other families.
This isn’t the same as saying, “just follow your dream,” of course. With all of our kids we did our best to show the pros and cons of their paths down the road to try to ensure they understood what was ahead (esp for medical lad with the schooling, debt, and work load), but after sharing thoughts - they got to pick their path for their lives (it’s not our life!) - and we supported as we could.
I honestly can’t fathom doing otherwise and feel for kids who could have had options to fill their desired niche if they’d had different parents.
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As a parent all I want for my children is their happiness. Whether or not they want to pursue a career that will make them a lot of $$$ (seemingly a goal for many parents here) is up to them. I certainly wouldn’t dissuade them from pursuing a passion just because it won’t result in an upper middle class life. That being said, I would suggest any student interested in the arts (or any lower paying career) avoid debt for schooling as far as possible. I don’t believe in carrying a lot of debt for undergrad and that goes double for majors that aren’t as well paying - you don’t want to make it impossible for a kid to be self-supporting. I am not, however, making my financial support for college contingent upon my kiddos selecting a major of my choosing - although I might suggest (not require) a practical minor as a fall back (i.e. some business courses) if they are interested in something in the arts/humanities.
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We tried a “do both” approach to majors.
I don’t want to limit my kid’s choice of majors. I did not choose a “practical” major myself.
But just like forcing a kid to pick a specific major can be limiting, so can allowing them to pick just any major. Certain majors can make earning a very high income less likely. Or jobs in some fields may be harder to come by. Or you may find yourself on a career path with generally more limited options.
That might not seem like a big deal to a 17-year-old who has never supported themselves and is happy to live in rundown apartments with roommates eating ramen. But it might seem like a much bigger deal when that same kid is 37 with two children of their own and then wants to be able to afford a safe neighborhood with good schools, oboe lessons, travel soccer fees, science camp, and trips to Disneyland.
Just like a kid can resent being forced down a career path, they can resent not getting any guidance to AVOID one or at least to enter with caution.
We suggested my kid consider double majoring if her primary interest seemed less likely to bring in a reliable, middle-class+ salary. Major in whatever her heart desired, yes, but also in something she liked that was in an area of ample employment/decent salaries.
I am biased in favor of double majors and minors, anyway, because I think it makes it easier to switch gears if a student discovers an area of interest isn’t as expected or isn’t ready to narrow potential career paths too much just yet.
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I absolutely agree that not getting any guidance is bad. Kids should be going into “whatever” knowing the typical pros and cons of the path. I like that our school requires students to create a budget based upon a typical starting salary for X job and actual rent, food, transportation, etc, costs. (Kids have to find a car for sale, an apartment for rent, etc, and print out the ads to use them in their project calculations.) This shows many “real life,” and yes, some do make changes when they see the bottom line of what they have left after each paycheck (taxes are taken out too).
But after all has been said and done, it’s their life and should be their choice.
If parents can’t afford X, it’s one thing. When they can (without dooming their own retirement, etc) and simply won’t because it’s not their personal “dream,” it’s sad.
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I don’t know how to “fill in the gaps” on financial illiteracy- and it’s not just HS kids or new college grads. I’ve got friends who took 15 year maternity leaves and were shocked (and angry) at “society” that they couldn’t get back on the professional ladder they were on when it was time to go back to work. They are flummoxed that working as a part-time yoga instructor/dating coach doesn’t pay as well as their old job in commercial banking; they think “somebody needs to fix the inequality” they discover when they realize that working as an aide in a child care center doesn’t pay as well as working in tech marketing.
I’d be the first person to agree that teaching (particularly in early childcare) is woefully underpaid, but if you only want to work 15 hours a week, and won’t commute, and don’t want to travel or have after-hours meetings, etc. you aren’t going to be named Chief Marketing Officer of Google after a decade plus hiatus from the labor force.
So knowing what jobs pay (and why) and the kind of salaries required to sustain certain lifestyles isn’t just important for HS kids. It’s important for everyone. It’s important for people who get divorced, it’s important for widows and widowers, it’s important for people of whatever gender contemplating stepping out of the labor force whether to take care of children or elderly relatives, etc.
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The best career advice that I was ever given was early in my career, my employer said “Either be born rich or marry rich.” Of course, I blew it on both accounts. 
The other piece of info that I’ll pass along, which I’ve mentioned before on this site, is when attending my D18’s freshman orientation at Michigan, the department representative said that 75-85% of the freshman will change their major at least once during their time there.
And speaking of Michigan, their School of Art & Design is ranked #8 in the US, according to USNWR. And they suggest dual majoring, you know, just in case. 
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It’s quite similar to how all med school hopefuls need a Plan B because around 60% won’t be accepted anywhere, and that’s just of those who make it to the application stage. Even more probably don’t make it that far.
Plan A is a start, not necessarily the end.
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