How Much Does College Matter?

It's that time of year when high-school seniors and their parents are biting their fingernails over college admissions. Seventy percent have probably been accepted to some four-year institution. The question now is where to go. We look at the past 10 years of increases in applications to the elite, most exclusive schools, and the multi-billion-dollar college-admissions industry, financed by parents' hopes for their children.