Interesting discussion about families and university studies, @Writin_Reg @Scobre
I think that real-life lack of support for students who have children doesn't mean we can't have something like that in the game. It would actually be rather nice to see it being a possibility.
I'm not sure how things are at the moment but I do remember one thing from the past where I grew up (Eastern Bloc in Europe): people with children and families were not at all discouraged from education, there were even dorms allocated for families. Normally, dorms didn't allow co-ed roommates but the family accommodation was specifically for couples (this was obviously back in the day when "families" were only traditional nuclear ones) with or without children.
Aside from the family support that was in the past and I'm pretty sure unfortunately hasn't survived the transition to capitalism in those countries, the vast majority of third level educational institutes accept what's referred to as "mature students" in any and all courses, provided they meet the admissions conditions. It's interesting to see that in the US, it seems to be a specific type of college or university only that supports older students.
I think it's precisely why it's a good idea to have it different in the game. Rather than excluding anyone but YA Sims from education, I'd love to see support for adults with families, or even just the ability for the family to live off-campus (obviously dorms would not be a good environment for children) and have, say, one parent work and the other attend university. Or have a single parent try to juggle both studies and a part-time or freelance job. It's no an easy ride for people with children but it's something that happens so it would be good to have included.
