Startup vs. Big Company: What's "Freedom"?

Clearly there are pluses & minuses to each path. But if a young student is interested in doing a startup, he/she should definitely try (while young).

It is no less of a "real world" experience than it would be if you worked at Google. In fact, it might be more "real" because you have to deal with everything from coding to tech support to marketing to taxes (and if you do well enough, payroll).