It’s that time of the year when students and
parents alike start to explore their post
high-school education options. One of the
things they begin to think of is the
difference between a university and a
college. The general assumption is that
universities offer better education than
colleges. Truth be told, there are a lot of
things to consider when making a decision
between a university and a college course.
Even though there a lot of differences, let’s
look at the four major variances between
the two.

This is, arguably, the most important
difference between university and college.
The reason being a university education is
very much academic. It’s abstract at most –
teaching you how to think critically. On the
other side, college education focuses more
on everyday, functional or applied
knowledge and practical learning – more or
less teaching you how to do things.
At university, you’ll likely sit in a lecture
theatre with over 150 people, listen to a
professor talk, and then read and hand in
assignments and essays. Whereas in college,
class often takes the form of the students
learning how to do something and then
getting up and doing it, e.g. opening up a
computer, baking a real cake with real
ingredients, or taking apart a car engine.
These forms of learning have advantages
and disadvantages – university graduates
sometimes find themselves unsure of what