Well, in Canada, 'college' means a 2 year technical diploma, and is basically worthless unless you are studying to be a mechanic or a secretary.

3 year university degrees exist, but only in general studies or a few very soft subjects.

The 'typical' degree which is called a 4-year degree, means you need to take the maximum course load every semester for 4 years. With scheduling, workloads, internships, etc..., it's very rare for anyone to complete it in 4 years in most fields (engineering, business, most sciences, etc...) these days. It's possible, but the vast majority take longer. If you change majors even once, good luck.

Anyhow, not sure exactly how the system works in the US. Maybe the system is efficient enough that graduating in 4 years is still a possibility? Maybe less people work because the cost is so high, whereas in Canada more students have jobs?

In the US, 4 years is what you shoot for for a BA or BS. If you really wear yourself out and overload, you might be able to do it in three, three and a half, but scheduling usually doesn't allow that - between pre-requisites, course limits, course availability, etc. If you've got any kind of hiccup along the way, like failing a class, not getting into courses you need, switching majors, taking a non-off term internship, health issues, etc, you're looking at five years.

With the catastrophic cost of a university education, people really have no choice but to take on debt to get a degree - even if you were working full-time, year-round, the wages you'd get as a high school graduate in some shit job don't even cover state-school tuition, let alone a private college, not to mention books, food, a place to live, etc. My dad made about $5k working over the summer in the 70s when he was in college, and I also made about $5k working when I could when I was in college in the 2000s. The difference is, that paid his whole year of school and living expenses, rather than half of one semester of tuition.

In the US:

* Changing majors

* Transferring from a community college to a university

* Failing or withdrawing from courses, especially ones not offered every semester

* Trying to balance coursework with a work schedule or childcare

Can all delay you a year or two, perhaps more in combination. I observed a complete paradigm shift between:

* The students who went straight from high school and into college; Lived in dorms, high representation in humanities programs, who were showing up to the 13th/14th grade with no real responsibilities and enough money to do as they like & find a thing they were interested in. They had a wide variety of grades (many failed, some did very well), but usually a relaxed attitude about risks and leisure time.

* The commuters, "nontraditional" students, & community college students/transfers, for whom many of the above were frequently true, and who were usually career-oriented. They tended to struggle for the B grade.

* The STEM upperclassmen & grad students, who had successfully defeated or overcome these hazards by becoming workaholics who dropped everything else in their life to finish in 4 years with high marks & internships. They rarely retained any social life, and were often academia-oriented.