Okay I’m about to be a high school senior in less than a week and still don’t know what I want to do with my life. I’m in the top ten of my class, have a high gpa, and can get into a good college like Penn state university park. But I hate school, I don’t like the socialness of it, plus I get a lot of anxiety and stress from just one assignment, and I get worked up and I do a good job because there’s no other way for me to do something otherwise I’ll get even more worked up. I can’t handle this stress for 4 years, then another 4 years for medical or some other school. My dad thinks I can be successful and go into pharmaceuticals or something, and I think so too, but I just can’t deal with school or the school work for no purpose. I was considering going to a not so elite community college so I could get an associates degree of science in nursing and become a registered nurse and go straight into that career, and if I decide I like it enough, perhaps I’ll go back for my bachelors and masters in that field. That’s settling for a specific career and ignoring my other potential, and I don’t know what to do. I worked so hard in high school and to that throw that away feels horrible, but if I don’t want to go to a big college for years and deal with the stress for my dad then it makes me feel just as bad. I could always go to a vocational school and become a nursing assistant and see how I like that and then decide if I want to become a nurse or go to college and have a different career. But that’s wasted time, ugh I just don’t know what to do. Advice?
If school work stresses you out you have a problem. School is a cakewalk compared to the (well paying) workplace.
Look at where you thrive. Maybe look at smaller schools. Consider a gap year doing something vocational, or working overseas- maybe there is a possibility to volunteer in a medical-related field? Start seeking help for your anxiety. It may not go away if you ignore it and just plunge headlong into more anxiety-provoking situations.
You definitely need to seek help with your anxiety situation because as Tom said, school really is typically easier than a work atmosphere. As for your actual question; I’d advise possibly starting off part-time and see how it goes. The more comfortable you get, the more classes you eventually add.
Personally though, I think you’ll like college a lot more than HS because there’s a lot less “socialness” inside your classes (plenty of socialness you can choose or not choose to participate in though).