If you can forgo color, I would just keep it simple and go with a black-and-white laser. For $150, the Brother HL-L2350DW is probably your best bet. It should get you through college pretty easily.
If you absolutely must have color, I would go with a no-frills, tank-based inkjet, such as the Canon PIXMA G1220, $99 on Amazon. Refill bottles are fairly cheap as well.
Here you go: Brother HL-L2350DW.
The link is a non-affiliate Amazon link. You may be able to find it for less elsewhere, but $150 is well within your budget, and it provides the exact experience you're looking for. I have the previous model (HL-2340DW), and, AFAICT, the only difference is mine isn't "Amazon Dash ready," and who cares about that?