Jon Gosselin is feeling optimistic about his future ... not only is his son, Collin, doing well at college, but he's also gearing up for some personal projects.
We caught up with the reality TV star in NYC, where he gave us big updates about his personal life. For starters, Jon was thrilled to share Collin -- one of his 8 famous kiddos with ex Kate Gosselin -- is attending Penn State.
This school news comes a month after Collin shared he was discharged from the Marine Corps over his past stint at a mental health facility.
Jon added ... "He's doing really well. He's just moving forward past everything that happened to him."
Collin notably moved in with Jon after alleging his mom, Kate, institutionalized him to hide her alleged abusive behavior. Kate has never publicly addressed the accusations of abuse -- but did say she had no choice but to send Collin away, as he had received several psychiatric diagnoses.
Jon supported Collin's decision to speak out against Kate, noting it was "closure" for his son. In fact, it appears Jon is inspired to share his side of the saga, too ... telling TMZ he hopes to start a podcast one day.
He noted ... "I have a lot to say in what I've learned. And, plus, I was gagged for so long that there's missing pieces in my story."
Watch the video for Jon's other big updates ... including possible engagement plans and a full physical transformation using CellSound.