The pressure at home for college students

What ever happen to the old advise parents gave to their Kids, do what makes you happy when you grow up. Now I hear, and have to admit to saying this to my kid's, make sure you pick a career with a future. This came to mind when I read a survey in the Chronicle of Higher Ed, that spoke about what Freshman thought in 2004, and again now.
There are three numbers in the survey that hit new record highs, being Dad is unemployed, the college I attend will get me a great job when I get out, and wanting to make money is very important. The unemployed parent has up almost 3% for college students in this survey. With so many people saving plans based on hope rather than money in the bank this area affects me the most here at U.N.C. This is the first time in six years when I started here, that we have a waiting list of people wanting to work for minimum wage. The other signs, no one is quiting like they normally do in the spring, far less want to miss work then ever before. I worry at times that they work more than they should, but I understand they need money to help make ends meet.The other topic related to unemployment is I have met several student, and parent both going to school at the same time. For my family, I have 2 siblings, my wife, and my step mother all going to school. Most of them have made this choice to attend school because of the economy.
The next fact that jumped up around 6%, in the survey, is the concern to get a good job after finishing college. More than half those surveyed looked at the job market when picking a field too study. Why?, if you hate your job, you will not last long. We get a lot of applicants who have lowered their standards to food service. Trust me, this in insulting first of all, and second you can't fake it in this customer service world. I had a student that still works for me, that told everyone before they went for a job interview last month, that they would be quitting. The interview was in their field of study, and they didn't score high enough to get an interview. A hard lesson to learn, but will help them in the future.
The final numbers state that almost 4 out of 5 college students pick a school, so they can be financially well off. While this is a good goal, what happens if this is not met. There are so many older people who are having to reevaluate their look at life now that they have been laid off during their peak earning years. Call me a fool, but I will keep going back to the basic thought of do what you love and the money will be there. For those of you who have had kids, may relate to the event of their birth being more memorable than the big bonus check you get at work. You have one life, do what you want to do, not what will make you money.

The Chronicle of Higher Education 1/21/2010 This years-freshman-at-4-years/63672