College is a transition. It does not matter if you're going a world away from home or commuting, college changes your life. Pre-college life is a learning experience. You're high school tries to teach you have to survive the real world. You're parents want you to succeed as an adult, so they try to instill in you good values and morals. Before college life kicks in, you think its going to be "the real world".
I'm in my third year of college and the real world still hasn't kicked in yet. Things get hard of course, but the real world will only get harder. College is the time in life after childhood and before the real world. College might seem like "adulting", but there are still more "adult-y" adults around to help you out. Living on campus, in particular, is a big change from living at home, but its not like living alone.
It's a transitional stage where you learn the difference between being in high school and having people looking out for you, to being out on your own. It's a time that allows you to really prepare to be on your own. To save up money, find an apartment, decide when it's a good time for you to be on your own. College prepares you for those next big moments that come after graduation.
College is the in between of life.
