Many teens wrestle with balancing their personal goals with their parents’ expectations.

For one student, the pressure to become a doctor clashed with a growing passion for the trades, leading to a standoff that left him questioning whose dream he was really chasing.

Read on for the full story.

AITA for telling my parents I do not want to attend university

I’m 16M, live in Canada with immigrant parents (41F, 55M) who’ve always dreamed of me becoming a doctor. Typical story: get good grades, go to a top university, become successful.

But for him, this future seems far out of reach.

I get why they want that for me, but I’m struggling in school—even though I study hard, I can’t get my grades up, especially in chemistry and biology. I’m more interested in math.

I’ve realized I don’t want to be a doctor. The process is long, stressful, and not for me.

He has a different idea about the path he wants to take.

Instead, I want to become an electrician. There’s good money, high demand, and solid job security, and I’d eventually like to open my own business in a bigger city.

Plus, I could start earlier through a co-op program in high school, but it means switching out of my current courses (bio, chem, physics).

But when he tells his parents, they’re not at all supportive.

When I told my parents, my mom flipped out and called trades jobs something “losers” do. My dad was more open to it, but still wants me to stay in my current classes “just in case.”

My mom now says if I don’t get 95%+ in science this year (I currently have 60%) she’ll punish me and ground me all summer.

He’s starting to feel hopeless and wonders what to do next.

I feel like I’m being forced into a path that I’m not interested in, and I’m tired of not being heard.

AITA for wanting to take a different path?

He isn’t wrong for wanting a life that feels like his own.

What did Reddit have to say?

This user affirms that going into a trade is a perfectly legitimate path.

Tradespeople aren’t just legitimate, they’re needed.

This user thinks the parents may have a very different view of tradespeople based on where they’re from.

It’s time to have a heart-to-heart with the ‘rents.

Following his parents’ vision for his life might earn their approval, but it won’t give him the satisfaction of forging his own path.

The best thing he can do for himself right now is to stand up for his own choices.

If you thought that was an interesting story, check out what happened when a family gave their in-laws a free place to stay in exchange for babysitting, but things changed when they don’t hold up their end of the bargain.