There's no way you could get every question answered in one go, but I'll try. If I don't hit every question you have, you need to ask the specific question. There are simply too many.
I just don't get it. Highschool is simple cause they have it laid out for you, but college is so open and broad.
High School and previous schooling runs off the classical liberal arts idea - they are a diverse selection of topics that you need to know to be considered a fully functioning member of society.
Obviously, if you learn about many topics, you can't learn a lot about one topic. This is where college/trade school comes in.
I'm a Computer Science major. I've decided that I want to learn only the topics relevant to Computer Science. I don't want to spend years learning Italian or History. I want to focus on Computer Science. So, I go to college and declare myself a Computer Science major.
Can someone explain how degrees work
Associate's Degree = 2 years of education.
Very little persuasive power.
Bachelor's Degree = 4 years of education. Considered the norm. Most majors require a Bachelor's.