The College Quest

Guidance proves key to their future

When Oyster Bay High School senior Daniel Bianculli wanted inside information about colleges, he had a high-powered helper.

For college hopefuls, a rise in rejection

When he applied to college last fall, Matthew DiGirolamo played the odds.

THE COLLEGE QUEST: SEVEN SENIORS, SEVEN DREAMS

Getting an early jump on college plans

Jacob Roberts is the model college applicant. He has spent a year and a half surfing through Web sites that discuss campuses. He has visited Tulane, Stanford, UCLA and the University of Pennsylvania, and he's talked to graduates of his high school about their experiences at college.

Paying high prices to bear the college burden

Sitting at her computer in Northport, Valerie Rowe entered her family's 2006 income and savings into an online version of a federal financial aid form. The computer spat back a number -- the Expected Family Contribution they'd need to put their daughter through college.

FAFSA entry key to most financial aid

Much like they did with any term paper or homework assignments back in the day, parents may procrastinate when it comes to filling the federal financial aid forms for their college-bound kids.

Striving for that winning college essay

Each September, students start Kathi Reilly's English elective cool and confident -- they are seniors, after all. But as the weeks pass, they seem to get younger, more vulnerable.

Taking the college quest on the road

As a professor flashed PowerPoint charts and gestured with a green-tipped laser pointer to describe the body's resistance to disease, Trinh Nguyen watched intently from a back seat in a Cornell University lecture hall. The lights were down. Students quietly tapped notes into laptops. College was starting to feel real.

Seniors face tough odds trying to get into college

A generation ago, Daniel Bianculli could have counted on an admissions letter from an Ivy League university. His SAT scores are in the top 99th percentile, he plays the trumpet in the band and starts on three varsity teams at Oyster Bay High. He wants to study physics and engineering at a place like Cornell so that one day he can join the CIA and thwart terrorists.

On the road with a guidance counselor

Freshmen deep in conversation stroll along a tree-lined plaza and past a bubbling fountain. The classes are small here, and students say they get to know their professors. Gwyeth Smith Jr. feels confident he can recommend Duquesne University to seniors at Oyster Bay High School.