Should my son go away for college or stay local? (see detail)?

[Dee D]

My son, a freshman, decided he wanted to stay at home and attend the local university which we both agreed on. He was a honor student and did well in HS. However now that classes have started I see where this decision might have been a mistake and that he should have gone away to college. I now think he made the decision to stay home out of fear of living independently in a dorm and facing the daily challenges on his own. (my fault in this is that I did not want him to go away so I did not encourage it, bad mom). I now also worry that it will take him longer to mature and become independent based on how relaxed he is at home. He has a car, friends, does a part-time job and appears too settled, too homely. He has his own bed to sleep in and home cooked meals, what more could he want? Yet he wants to go to medical school eventually. I am not sure if this is the right path for him to take. I think he is taking the path of least resistance and it will serve him no good. As a parent I think it is my responsibility to guide him and I would hate to see him settled for this lifestyle because I did not do my job. He listens to what I say and would reluctantly go if I strongly suggested it. So, should I push him a bit to go away after this semester so he could focus on his education or am I being paranoid?