...switch between tablet mode and keyboard mode...
Do you have to switch? Can’t you touch-screen and type back and forth at will?
I’m quite interested in 2-in-1 for my teens.
I am older than your teen, and use the laptop 99% as a laptop. I use the touch interface is only during customer demos.
I suspect that your teen will have a much different usage model than I do, as a digital native.
Switching back and forth is easy and takes little time. The touch screen is always active, and causes me to watch the back of my arm while typing. My family has use the tablet mode to watch Netflix while traveling.
If you go this way, pay more and get a 2-in-1 with a SSD drive and a good video chip set. Well worth the extra money.
Or, if they won't use the touch screen much, just do like I did and buy your student the best Mac that you can afford. I spent over $3000 on a Macbook but it will last for years - and still be usable. -Zero- headaches from spyware, which means my student will not have their personal and financial information sold all over eastern Europe.
You don't need to spend as much as I did but my daughter was heading into chemical engineering. I also bought a friend's kid a powerful Macbook for about $1400 from Adorama.
Kids pick up OSX very fast.