Is college really worth it?

[Yo_Mama]

55. Not if it's unfocused. A generic degree is not the way to spend that money.

Why not start off at the local community college and see if he develops an interest? Trade schools (if he knows what he wants) are a better investment.

For now, a job and a few courses in community college. Eighteen is very young for many to know what they want, and the cost to muddle around for a year or two at most four year schools trying to figure it out is prohibitive. In a community college he can keep his hand in and perhaps working will generate a little motivation and give him a clue.

You don't say whether he's the academic type. Does he have other aptitudes? Mechanical, carpentry, whatever?

The US economy seems short right now of a lot of crafts/tech labor. If he likes to work with his hands, training to be an electrician or a plumber or almost any of a number of skilled trades is a good option.