Trade School vs Community College?

hey there -

brand new to this site and have been reading what seems to be some very honest feedback. that's exactly what im hoping to get... with that, i'm about to turn 40, married with a teenage son. i've worked every shift imaginable and have the full support of my family when the shifts arent the fun ones. have been in the same industry for 20 years, its not what it used to be and i have no real opportunity to make a difference or feel some meaning in it.

i've come to the conclusion that the best thing for me to do toward figuring out if any level of nursing or specialty medical tech job is for me is to start at a community college with the common pre-reqs for both paths. this way if im not cut out for it then im not out much. plus, with only one income right now, pay-as-you go is what we can do. may take a ton of time but you have to start somewhere. went to trade school in the past and i was just a giant dollar sign to them. once i got to class it was not at all what i signed up for and im still paying the student loans. the community college i'd start the medical pre-req's at has an excellent RN program so i could make the transition there. i have an assesment test scheduled for next month on the math (ugh).

so my questions are... what experiences can you share about trade school and/or community college? recommend one over the other/why? what do you wish someone would have told you up front before you entered your first class? - good or bad - any feedback is seriously appreciated. i have a feeling that the schooling and work itself will be quite hard but i'm looking forward to it; the rewards seem to come on many levels. for a split second, i thought i might be too old to start doing this. anyone with feedback on that, its most welcomed! thanks in advance for your time and thanks to each nurse here for what you do each day.