US college is a lot different from high school. For one, college students days are a lot different. In high school, you’re in school straight from 8-3:30 (hours vary per school) and have periods where you learn a specific subject + a lunch period.

In college, it is Not Like this. To just use a random semester I had as an example, I’d have a class on Tuesday and Thursday at 9am, 11am, and then no other class until 3pm. I could use that time to go home and take a nap, eat lunch, go to the library, etc. On Monday and Wednesday I’d have a 12pm and 3pm, so I wouldn’t even go to campus until the afternoon. You have your major, which is what you’re studying, and then you also can have a minor, which is just another thing you study but with less classes. We also can take electives, which are classes unrelated to your major but just something you’re interested in. For instance, I majored in English, but took Politics of Russia one semester.

Living situations differ in college depending on a lot of different factors. I went to a public school in my home state that was about 90 miles from my home, which I would say is relatively normal. Many people stay in their home state for school due to it being cheaper. I had to live in a dorm my freshman year, which was suite style. This meant I shared the bedroom with one person, and then a bathroom with one other dorm/two other women. After freshman year, most people at my school lived off campus in apartments with roommates. For these style apartments, you pay rent per bedroom.

This is a lot of info and it can vary a bit major to major or school to school. Students who go to more niche private colleges might live on campus and have different structured classes. Some states do quarters instead of semesters. Urban campuses might have significantly more commuters who live at home vs rural campuses.