Canadian/US Credentials

I posted the following in the Distance Ed forum - thought I'd try it here as well:

I am trying to understand the structure of the education system in Canada. Can anyone help? As far as I can tell from my research, the highest form of post-secondary school in Canada would be the university. Each province or territoty has one or more universities. As far as I can tell, study at Canadian "universities" is generally considered RA equivalent here in the United States. These universities frequently have federated or affiliated colleges. It is here I become confused. For example, the University of Saskatchewan has about 6 "affiliated" colleges. Does study at one of these "affiliates" carry the same basic equivalency (here in the U.S.) as the university itself?