Also remember there is more to life than just a career path. I always tell parents your goal is to raise somebody who is happy with their life and is also able to have meaningful relationships and friendships with others. Life is not just some race to some theoretical finish line of achievement. It is a journey. And everyone has a different approach to how to achieve that balance or how they want to spend their days. My eldest chose graduate school to become an NP over an MD because she knew she wanted a balance in her life that becoming an MD would not allow. Her brother did not choose to attend the most competitive and well known graduate program he was admitted to because he also wanted a balance. Both have excelled in their own way in their profession and both also are in strong and meaningful relationships. And I confess as a grandma-to-be, I am just as proud of their relationships as I am of their professional accomplishments. My youngest is still exploring what he wants, but he has a very strong peer group which has helped him through some of the bumps and setbacks he encounters as he tries to achieve being a professional musician.