I feel like a lot of the issues you're describing could be resolved with Axure. It doesn't really use artboards in a sense (though one could argue that a dynamic panel is an artboard). And it does have some degree of animation support (though not as robust as something like Sketch + Principle).

I don't know, I'm just a fan of Axure. Try it, if you haven't yet?

They rolled it out 3 years ago. It's called Google Inbox.

This is wonderful, and more people should see it.

It's super sparkly and I love it.

Do side projects, non-profit design work, and work for friends/family. Use that, plus content from your school work, to build a portfolio online. Show that portfolio (and your resume) to potential employers/clients to demonstrate your skills. I've seen that having a killer portfolio can often outweigh a scarcity of industry experience.

I like to set my "screen size" in my prototyping software to match the pixel dimensions of the screen I'm working on. The smaller, the better. Designing for your minimum common resolution will guarantee that it'll fit nicely on bigger screens.

I think it's going to continue to flourish, as the technology and company cultures keep improving to make remote design work more feasible. And I'm all for it. Giving people the flexibility to work where and when they want is fantastic, as long as they get the job done.

Axure, hands down.

As is the case with pretty much every company, their employee's financial future is not the company's responsibility. If employers were concerned about suddenly denying people a crucial source of income, no one would ever get fired. Figure out WHY he's not putting in the expected amount of time. Talk to him. If that doesn't work, give him an ultimatum: either he shapes up, or you nullify the contract and get someone else to do the work.