<p>
[QUOTE=calmom]
Anyway, I have seen quite a few of my daughter’s high school friends come home after a semester or year away at college – they were miserable and their college didn’t work out for them. My own kids have not been all that happy with their colleges from a social standpoint. I wouldn’t want to be the person responsible for urging somebody else’s homebody kid to make a choice that she was not emotionally ready for. Leaving home is not for everyone.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>You’re right, of course, that stepping on toes and pressuring people to change their decisions is not a good idea. But offering input in a very non-confrontational way can only be helpful, I think. Pressing the issue would be a bad idea, and if there is immediate pushback, obviously the right thing to do is apologize and drop the issue, but my personal philosophy is to offer advice, because you never know when it will really be helpful for them. In this case, maybe the parents haven’t ever considered full 4 year colleges because they never went, and that impression has just become a part of their daughter’s unconscious influences. Maybe offering a counterpoint could change her life in a positive way. Maybe not - maybe this decision is best for her and their family, and advice will not change it. But why not offer the advice?</p>