Secondly, the terms college and university are often used interchangeably, but there are some differences. For one thing, the word “university” is used primarily for institutions which offer four-year bachelors degrees and graduate programs. Originally, universities were all research institutions, but in the past few decades, a lot of places have felt that there was a prestige factor involved in being called a university, and they have changed their names from “college” to “university”.

“College” has a couple of possible meanings. First of all, it may be an institution of higher education which offers two-year associates degrees (such as community colleges) or four-year degrees. A few colleges have added a few graduate programs, but they usually are still focused on undergraduate students. The other meaning of “college” is what is called a “faculty” in Canada; an administrative grouping within an overall university which covers a related set of subject matters – you might find a College of Engineering, for example, within a particular University, or another example would be that Harvard College is the school of humanities and social sciences within Harvard University.