I can't tell if your system is more or less complicated than ours is where you go through elementary-high school, then can apply to a number of things, whether it's a technical college to earn a skill (think electrical, HVAC, automotive, IT), a community college (normally Associate's Degrees are given I think? Cheaper, some people use them to get general education requirements out of the way before transferring into a university to finish a degree), and then there are universities. Or even colleges where you can get a good education but it's not considered a University, idk.
But community college and university here are just generalized as "college."
Is it similar to being Independent?
Eer crud, speaking of political parties, I have to figure out how to do an absentee ballot since I won't be able to get to my voter place this year! Class and all. I never registered for a party though either and am thinking I kind of want to but am unsure, so i PROBABLY WON'T.
I learned about it in English, well still am in the process of learning about it. But then another class is going to have us read it too, LOL.
Yes, it adequately answered those.
Log in (
Safety Zone
Hotlines
Alternatives
Calendar
) - do it when you have time, but don't push more important things aside (including eating and sleeping) just to get it done. If it's up by Christmas you'll still probably be below the average time. 
I'll try my best to at least do one tonight or tomorrow, but I wanted to say if it takes me a bit I haven't abandoned them, I'm just a college student who hasn't figured out her schedule. 
Unless it's like personal or something because then I take that back, but I was assuming it as being a more "beware of a long explanation" thing. 
