20 Years Old, Supporting My Family, and Stuck Between Freelancing and University — What Should I Do?
Hi everyone,
I’m from Pakistan and I’ve been freelancing for the last 4 years. Alhamdulillah, I’m earning a handsome amount at a young age, and right now I’m the one managing my family’s expenses because my father lost his job last year.
I did Pre-Medical in college, but over time I realized my real interest is in programming, automation, and tech. My academic scores were average — 60% in FSC and 85% in Matric — so because of merit, the best university option I currently have for CS is CUST.
The thing is, I’m very confused about my future.
On one side, freelancing is already working well for me financially, and my family depends on my income. On the other side, my family strongly wants me to get a degree, and honestly, I also feel like I’ve missed out on life socially. I took a gap year after 2nd year, and for the past 4 years I’ve mostly been sitting alone in a room working. I hardly have 2 friends, and I feel disconnected from normal social life.
I’ll turn 20 this August, and I also dream of moving abroad someday, probably to a European country, but I don’t know whether skipping university would hurt my future opportunities.
So now I’m stuck between:
- Continuing freelancing full-time and scaling my career
- Going to CUST for a CS degree while balancing family responsibilities
- Figuring out how to build a social life and secure a future abroad
I’d genuinely appreciate advice from people who have gone through something similar or understand both freelancing and university life.
Thank you.