In my opinion, it's just plain stupid to put yourself in to debt to get a degree if you're not even sure it will help you later in life. A degree isn't a guarantee of success. Not saying that college is never a good idea, but it's not exactly a no brainer either, especially if they live somewhere where college is not an easily accessible option.
Just saying, "go to college" without any other information is not the best general life advice for someone, just like "go into business" isn't good advice either.
I can't really take an opinion on the debt thing.
I very fortunately live in a country where all studies are free by law. If I get the chance to educate myself to a degree that can cost hundreds of thousands in other countries, it's a pretty no-brainer for me to grab on to that offer.
I don't know the cost of college in OP's country, but I'd still bet my money on the guy who goes to get a degree on a subject that they truly are interested in, rather than the guy who starts a business at 18.
I'm also pretty biased in my thinking about this topic since I live in a country where a high education means a LOT. Our education system and the job market is structured in a way that very, very much leans towards people who have the highest degrees. It's rather hard to make any good money here if you don't amass any academical background.
I can't really say on OP's behalf what the situation regarding academical education is in his country, but still, I would never guess that that would be the worse choice. It's just not logical to me that an 18-year old should put all his faith into making it in business, which statistically speaking, is most likely not going to happen. Most entrepreneurs who make it big, make it at 40+ years old.
If you aren't going to statistically make it in your youth, why wouldn't it be the wiser choice to lean for the more stable choice of education?
Said self made millionaire at 19!
Not a millionaire yet, but hopefully soon!
1. I didn't like school.
1.1. I didn't like culture around here.
1.2. Traumatic.
2. I am on the left side of some IQ charts (below 100).
3. I am easily frustrated / emotionally unstable.
4. I don't speak English in "spoken" (mouth way) daily, so I can't go to another country to study in another, less weird way.
It can go wrong, especially if you think it's gonna be easy like I would want it to be. And you don't have backup plan if your education fails.
My life is all over the place and hence I wouldn't go to any college until it's sorted as I would get suboptimal results with my current problems.
I can't speak on behalf of
everyone. There will always be the extreme cases.
For the average person, it is, in my opinion, the wiser choice to choose education over gambling at business.