University and University college are names that are often used interchangeably. However, they refer to different things altogether; a university and a university college is not the same thing. So what is the difference between a "college" and a "university"?
There are a lot of things to consider when making the decisions between a university and a university college program. These are some of the popular differences between the two:
Undergraduate and graduate programs.
Colleges only offer and focus on undergraduate programs. They may be smaller than universities because they only offer undergraduate degrees (for example Bachelor degrees).
Universities, not only offer undergraduate degrees, they also offer graduate degrees. Usually, they can include Master's programs and Ph.D. programs as well as graduate schools, like law schools and medical schools.
Time of Study
In general, university degree take longer to finish than a college program. University students have a lot of free time than a college student. In many university programs, students have a lot of free time on their time table, they might have three or four hours of classes, followed by days with none.
College classes, on the other hand, are often fairly fixed and the school days can be very intensive. It is kind of similar to high school in some ways, a college timetable might have you at your desk from 9 A.M to 4 P.M all week. Something that is unthinkable in most universities. If you are forcing your way through school and work, this could be mean your worst night mare come true.
Cost of Study.
University programs are more expensive than college programs. What you pay in university can be double of what you would pay for college course. Though it is not always the case.
Way of Education
This is one of the most notable difference between university and university college. In a nutshell, a university education tends to be highly academic, and abstract. University teaches you how to think critically about the world around you.
On the other hand, a college education focuses more on applied knowledge and hands on learning. College teaches you how to do something in the world.
For example, A Computer Science student in a university may not get access to a computer or receive a practical lesson on how to write a simple computer program using C. The lecturer while only explain about the whole thing and leave majority of the work in the hands of the student.
This is usually the case because of the urge population of students that is being taught together in a class room. On the flip side, a college student will receive more practical lessons and one on one attention from a lecturer since it they are not usually many in the class.
Certificate value.
Because universities tend to be bigger institutions, with more course options and longer programs, they have come to be seen as more prestigious post-secondary choice.
In fact, in the eyes of some employers a university degree is still seen as being more valuable than a college degree. Just having a university degree on your CV might be enough to get you a job, when you put up against a college-trained applicant.
However, this is not always the case as the skills of the applicant is also put into consideration.
In conclusion, it really goes down to individual preference, which school and program one feels will prepare him or her better for the future.
The best way to make a better choice is to do a lot of research on which program will suit you. Talk to former students to find out if they think they wasted their time taking a university course or a college course. Also go a step further by asking potential employers what kind of program that would suggest.
References:
About.com
Wikipedia.com
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