They did provide for OP, right through high school. Contrary to popular belief, many jobs don't require college education to start, and many students are simply wasting their time on degrees they'll never use and courses beyond their intellectual capacity. I never went to college, I worked those years instead and started my own business. Instead of being an office drone with a bSc I'm proudly part of the "evil" top 1% of Canadian incomes.

I'm sorry, 44, but that's the dumbest advice I've ever heard.

Actually 55, all of my friends who didn't go to university, and instead worked for those years all have bought at least one house (most have 2-3 they rent out). My own mother left school at 16, and now owns 3 companies, estimated to be worth $10+ million.

Can someone explain the American college tuition? I see FMLs about it all the time and I still don't fully understand. Do you have to pay for each year up front? I'm guessing you don't do student loans for everyone, but do you get any aid? How easy is it to get financial help? In England, you get a tuition loan to pay for schooling and a maintenance loan to help pay for books and things if you need it. The amount you get in maintenance depends on how much money your family has. I think you pay back as soon as your earning over a certain amount (it comes out of your account along with taxes) and once you hit a certain age, the debt is wiped anyway. Is there a system like that in America? I may be misunderstanding something, but it seems really unfair that people without money can't go to university, no matter how smart they are. Edit: crap, I didn't mean to reply to you guys! Sorry! On your subject though, you don't need higher education to get a good job. I know lots of people who got a full time job or an apprenticeship instead of uni :)

Once you hit a certain age the debt is wiped away? You're either lying or.......I don't know. That sounds amazing! My dad's 47 and he still has $20,000 in student loans! Granted, he majored in a dying industry: printing. England, here I come!

Not lying haha. Google "student finance uk what, when and how to repay". You have thirty years of payments and once that time period is up the debt no longer exists, whether or not you've paid it all off. :)

I would like to agree, but my mother did something similar to me. All of my birthday money from ages 1 to 15 went into savings for college and my mother drew it out for a down payment on a house. I didn't have a car or job until after high school because we were too far out of town and employers wouldn't hire me without transportation. To make it worse, when my family found out about where the money went they didn't give me anymore birthday money to go into savings. Mom included the house in her bankruptcy and I worked for the last 10 years paying for her apartment and all of her bills. Now I'm living off of around $100 a month from a part time job, while loans and financial aid pay for school. I'm already 27k in debt and just I'm my second year. The down payment on the house was just under 40k. That would've got me through my first 4 years easily back in 2003.

I lived out in the country during my high school years, i found transportation through family or friends or borrowed my mothers vehicle, I understand where you are coming from. Also you could have set up your own savings account that your mother couldnt touch after you found out that she did this.