Is it for you?
I am nearing the end of my college career and have experienced many types of students during my stay. I am blessed that my parents stressed the importance of college to me and made me understand how serious the costs of attendance. They helped me out tremeandously and I am proud to say that I am going to graduate debt free. This is something that not many college students have the privelage of saying.
I am currently attending a state school in the midwest that is not cheap by any means but is a lot cheaper than other private colleges. I understood the seriousness of college and that there was no room for error on my part. If I fucked up there would be no second chance. My parents expected near perfection since they were the ones financing my college career and I gave it to them out of fear and respect. I took my time at school extremely serious. Sure, I fooled around and was drunk more times than not, but I always got my shit done.
The funny thing that I kept on running into during my time on campus was kids that would take out huge amounts of students loans and then were not serious about their studies. This truly baffeled me. Did they not know that the loans would have to be paid back? They sure acted like they were going to college for free, but that wasn't the case.
The point is to know yourself. If you really struggled in highschool and don't really enjoy the concept of learning in the classroom, then DO NOT GO TO COLLEGE. It is not worth the thousands of dollars to give it the old college try. It is way too expensive for that mistake.
Look into alternative options like a trade or opening up a franchise. These are vialbe alternatives that can actually benefit you. But you will still have to put in the work. That is what I think is at the root of the issue. Society has taught kids that they need instant gradifiction. This is not realistic. You students need to understand that greatness takes time. It is not going to happen over night. You need to work on you craft day in and day out and really find out what you are passionate about. You owe it to yourself.