How to Keep Your Child in College (When They Want to Quit)

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By madambutterfly
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Keep your kid in college! High school was a blast. The first year of college was okay until the novelty wore off. Now, the classes have gotten harder, the parties are fewer and they're beginning to wonder why they have to stay in college.

Difficulty: Moderately Challenging

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

Patience
The ability to resist the urge to say, "I told you so"

Step 1

Communicate. What do you do when your child has finished 50% of the course requirements to earn a college degree and they want to quit? Talk to them until you're blue in the face about the importance of a good education. A few decades ago, a high school diploma was sufficient to land a good paying job that you could keep until retirement without fear of layoff. Well my friends, those days are long gone. To be competitive in today's workforce and the workforce of the future, a college degree is paramount to one's success. Share statistics of today's successful professionals, i.e. salaries, promotability, marketability, competitive edge. A college degree will not only lay the foundation to solidify secondary education and learn business economics, the four years spent obtaining the degree go along way in preparing your child for life on their own. It's important they learn to exist without the constant supervision of mom and dad.
Step 2

If they still want to quit. So you've talked until you were ten different shades of blue in the face and they still want to quit. The grades are slipping and their class attendance has long since fallen by the wayside. You can't continue to throw good money out the window if the kid is no longer interested in preparing for their future by earning a college degree. Let them make the final decision. If they decide to quit school ensure they do it by going through the proper withdrawal channels, etc. This will ensure they're able to return in the future to finish what they started.
Step 3

Send them to work. It goes a little something like this: "If you're not going to school, you have to go to work." If your child is like the average american college student, they have to incur student loans to finance their education. If they have loans, remind them that repayment begins 6 months after they finish school, whether they earn a degree or not. They'll need a job to make payments. So, help them find a job.
Step 4

Applying for jobs without a degree. Now it gets interesting. Be supportive and assist them in finding a job within the field of their college major. They'll soon realize that the vast majority of employers that have openings in their field are looking for workers that already possess a college degree. Once frustration sets in, the cash flow is nonexistent and the due date for repayment of the student loans continues to approach, most often they'll take whatever job then can get. If you're lucky they'll get a menial job that pays barely above minimum wage!
Step 5

Countdown. Casually ask them about their decision to quit college and go to work. Was it worth it? You may refer them to www.salary.com to research the potential salary of someone with a degree in their field in today's workplace. Have them compare it to what they're making now and remind them that they'll have even less money when they begin to repay those student loans.
Step 6

Let them decide. Once they look into the future of where they are now and where they could potentially be by returning to college and completing the degree requirements the light begins to shine! The lesser of two evils should prevail. Spend another 1 or 2 years completing a degree that opens up endless possibilities or keep this menial job making less than I deserve...They'll soon discover what you already knew, they're worth the investment, college really isn't that bad and it doesn't last forever.

Comments

ilovejolie86 said

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on 3/8/2009 Unfortunately, there isn't much you can do with an Associates Degree in Photography. And I can't find anything else I'm interested in. So I can complete my degree in a field I love but not be able to translate it to a career - or I can switch to a major that I hate but will guarantee me a job. Pretty much a lose/lose situation there.