Do what your instincts tell you to do. In the last ten years of my life I did not follow my instincts and let other people pressure me to do what they thought was right. It was a disaster and I still regret it.
Alright man so i read your post and totally skipped everyone elses comments because they mean shit. I am on the opposite end of the spectrum, I am leaving my university after 3 years and going to community college for the fall just so i stay on my parents health insurance than finishing up at an easier school. This fall I want to give trading a shot again since I will be taking night classes. The single most important thing to me is having that personal security. I want to know that regardless of what happens to me after school that i could always go to the market and do that for a living. Maybe i wont make ridiculous money but i could make solid money. I really want to trade for an investment bank and honestly i have really no other interests at this point. Sounds to me like you have have solid results. Think about it from this point of view, you have went into a open market and made money. That has to provide quite a sense of security.
If TRADING were for YOU...This question would not have arisen. I don't think you are a Risk taker at heart. So, go to your school and get that all IMPORTANT COLLEGE EDUCATION
Look for a university with WIFI all over campus and carry your Laptop with your trading software fully loaded. Also have a tape recorder. If you have some serious trading positions in the market while listening to the Professor, simply put the tape on to get the lecture while trading with your Laptop. The prof will think you are writing lecture notes with your laptop. If you have no serious trading positions, then you don't have a problem. Just listen to the Prof and forget the market until you get back home or the dorm. Day trading will not make you filthy rich but position trading or swing trading will. Hence, change your trading strategy so that you do not babysit your trades. This will allow you do your school home work and trade also. Heck! What do you trade by the way? You did not tell us. If you are trading Futures, $50,000 is not much and you must keep your eyes on the ball every minute while making sure that you do not trade with more than $5,000 or even $2,500 at any one time. If you are trading stocks or options, then trade with a max of $15,000 of your $50,000 and always protect the $2,500 or $15,000 with effective stops. You can do both. Just make sure you have a solid trading plan with precise trading rules and be very disciplined in following those rules.. Then have fun trading and going to school. You'll not regret going to school. At the least you might meet your future spouse who might turn out to be a Medical Doctor that will stabilize you financially if you blow up your Trading Account. You never know.
This was my experience with a similar dilemma. Turned 21 in 2000, started trading prop. Made about the same as you 1st year. It was tough, though. trading stock market 8:30-3:00 then busting over to class from 3:30-6:30 every day, trying to listen while my non-risk-control-understanding-brain was fried, but managed to balance trading/school/friends. I'd tell my profs what I did, and they told me how much they lost in AMZN & CSCO (that was a real motivator to go to class) Then I got a girlfriend. Decided one of the things on my plate had to go, and it was school. Year 2 was not as much fun, edge wasn't working and had bills to pay (moved into nicer pad, etc..), and that lack of risk control always seemed to crop up at the worst times. After year of that, I realized that I should probably go back to school. I'd given trading a shot, it didn't work out, no big deal. Swallowed my pride, got a part-time job on the weekends and paid my way through the next two years of school. Which included studying abroad and traveling in Asia for my last semester, which was probably the best decision I ever made in my life. Did some more traveling, and figured, why not give trading another shot? I had 3 years to reflect on my mistakes and read the market wizards series (ahah! risk control!). Been trading full-time for 2.5 years and doing pretty well. One of the reasons I went back to school was I felt it made a better risk/reward. With a degree, I could take more risk careerwise. If trading didn't work out, I knew I could still get a finance gig somewhere. But if I blew out trading at 28, AND THEN had to go back to school, that would be tough. Not impossible, but not what I wanted to do. Whatever you do, pick one and do only that. Trading is a full-time job. School should be as well. If you want to trade, you won't be able to compete if you've got finals week during earnings season. And if you want to go to school, bust ass, and take advantage of all your college has to offer. Girls, interesting classes, intramurals, study abroad(learning 2nd language), girls, etc...
hey - you are right, I wouldn't call myself a huge risk taker. However, I don't think that in order to trade for a living you have to be a huge risk taker. I would say you probably have a better chance of surviving if you come into trading not being a huge risk taker.