> More ways to describe concepts in my head, I think, has helped me compose bigger ideas.

This is the most valuable thing you will get out of any learning you do (in college or otherwise).

To quote Joel Spolsky [1], "... the best programmers all have an easy aptitude for dealing with multiple levels of abstraction simultaneously."

[1] http://www.joelonsoftware.com/articles/GuerrillaInterviewing...