College+Expectations - somewhat of a rant

Instructions

Heyo! So, I'm an 18-year old senior in highschool and all I hear is 'which college you going to?' and 'what do you plan on studying in college?' Every class I've taken the past 2 years has either made me answer a question on it to 'get to know me' or do a research assignment on colleges and job wages. Most people in this world expect you to know what you want to do for the rest of your life when the odds are you haven't even lived a fraction of it yet. People repeatedly ask you what you picture your future career to be when you're only 16 and focused on passing that school year. To be fair some do know what they want to do with their life that early, and that's a-okay! But I ask we normalize both going to college and not going. Not going to college in the world as it stands usually means lower paying jobs. But here's the thing: you don't need a LAVISH salary to live comfortably. When I say 'I don't know if i'm even going to go , much less what I want to study' to those people that ask me about college, I'm immediatly countered with 'then you'll end up flipping burgers at a fast food joint making minimum wage.' I'm a FIRM believer that 'everyone has to start somewhere' odds are, you're not going to stay at your first, entry-level job forever. You can move up the ranks for higher pay, or find a better job with better benefits. And minimum wage is not too bad, especially as it's been increasing over the past couple years and continue increasing over the next few to the point where it reaches $15 per hour. It allows you to live comfortably as long as you watch your funds. Pay for only what you need and save the rest. That saving will add up eventually and pay off majorly in the end. There are also overlooked positions like those in hvac programs. They can make decent money and those positions will always be open as their will always be a need for repair people. And for those who plan on going: changing your major is also okay! It comes back to making people decide what they want to do with the rest of their life WAY too early. You may go in thinking you want to do one thing and end up finding something you like better. Go for it! Spend your life doing something you enjoy. Another thing, a personal story this time. I've wanted to go into the medical field after it captured my attention when I was 3. I'm now 18 and when I was 15-16 I discovered that blood+neeldes are not okay, 17 rolls around I decide I can't deal with a profession that has to loose people and move on to the next. I can't do that. Their is so much more paperwork that goes on behind the scenes than I'm willing to deal with. My family now likes to hold that over me, especially when I suggest going into concept art, CGI, or other art field. They bring up that doctors make SIGNIFICANTLY MORE than either of those positions. But here's the thing: I enjoy those SO MUCH MORE. I'd rather live a life doing something I enjoy but living with a lower income than a boring desk job with a high wage. Then, there's my cousin. He wanted to be a firefighter, but his family has pushed him to go to college for computer science because 'he's good at it'. He went to college but he couldn't even complete a semester because it was simply too much for him. So he returned home. His parents have since 'convinced' him to go back and try again. He's still struggling, but says he's okay. Congrats for those who read this far. I truly believe this is an issue. While the world has made it easier to go to college, it simply isn't for everyone. The world makes you decide what you want to do for the rest of your life before you've even lived a fraction of it and expects you to stick with it. It looks down on people that work in entry-level positions even though some of them started there too. Most people on here aren't even to the age where they should be thinking about this kind of thing yet. Where that shouldn't /have/ to think about this yet, but people still constantly ask you 'what do you picture yourself doing in 10 years' to 'get to know you'.