Asklemmy

The answer varies inside and outside the US.

In most countries, Universities offer 4+ year programs and offer accredited degrees. These undergraduate degrees prepare you for even more advanced agrees like Masters or Doctorate ( PhD ). Universities offer medical and law degrees. Universities are the elite schools and are generally only found in larger centres. Colleges on the other hand tend to be vocational and more simply adult study. A college issues a diploma, not a degree and is typically not accredited in the same way. Colleges can be very regional.

You would go to university to get a law degree and collage to get a diploma in criminology. You would go to university to become an engineer and college to become a technician.

In the US, the term college is often used to refer to universities as well and universities sometimes offer a mix of degree and diploma programs. Somebody that went to a state university might refer to it as college. The term Ivy League identifies schools that other countries would identify as universities. In the US, the term community college is more representative of what other countries call colleges. That said, community colleges in the US can be of lower quality than most countries would tolerate ( in my view ).

In Canada, the system is slowly moving towards the US standard. Many colleges or technical institutes are trying to position themselves as universities. There is a rapid increase in the number of colleges, especially those catering to international students.