For me, my first exposure to Linux was around that same time, but with SuSE. It's still my go-to distro, even though I've installed and used dozens of different ones. Compiling Gentoo over a weekend is a fun experience at least once.
Domain registrars are required to collect your real information and display it in the Whois database. Many registrars offer a "Whois privacy" service where they put their name and address in the database instead of yours, most charge a fee for this. That's one thing to keep in mind.
Try it and see. It depends on your professors and what software they want to use for class. I was able to get through college just fine on Linux, but a couple classes were made easier with windows, so I ran a VM for those classes.
Styx