Students applying to college this winter have to manage an array of labor-intensive tasks, from crafting a heart-stopping essay to getting through dizzying financial aid paperwork. Navigating the ins and outs of the process is onerous for any student, but can be particularly challenging for young people who are the first in their family to apply. 

"A lot of young our people don't expect to ever go to college," said Ana Marsh, principal of the Bushwick School for Social Justice, which enrolls primarily low-income students of color. "Let's be real: some young men don't even expect to live past a certain age, let alone go to college. So the fact that they get to this spot and it's like, 'Oh, I have to apply to college.' It's overwhelming."

Sometimes students want to give up on the process, she said. The school has invested in more counselors, about one per grade, to work with students closely on college prospects — and other social-emotional issues — starting in ninth grade. 

Citywide, there was one counselor for every 224 students in high school grades in the 2017-2018 school year, according to the education department. That ratio is better than the overall citywide counselor to student ratio, and it even exceeds the recommended caseload of 1:250 by the American School Counselor Association and the National Association for College Admission Counseling. 

But for students like Marsh's, who don't have a network of peers or adults who have applied to college, they need more attention to decipher paperwork or explain college dreams to parents who may not see its value.     

"I knew what I wanted and I feel like one of my biggest obstacles was like communicating that with my family," said Christine Rodriguez, a graduate of the Bushwick School for Social Justice. 

Rodriguez is the subject of a documentary film on this very issue, called Personal Statement, and she returned to her alma mater this month for a screening with current students. The film follows Rodriguez and two other students at different high schools; it depicts the students' own aspirations and shows their work as peer counselors who are trained to help classmates get through the college application process. 

Rodriguez pursued her dream and is now a senior at The New School in Manhattan. 

"I think the main thing that comes up — a lot of people are like, 'How am I going to pay for this?'" said Michelly Meza, a current peer counselor at the Bushwick School for Social Justice who is also working to complete college applications herself.  "And I'm like, 'Complete your financial aid. You will know after that what you will need to have to deal with.'"

Encouraging persistence, Meza said, is key to helping her classmates.  

The city is trying to make applying to college easier for students in some ways. All juniors are now able to take the SAT during the school day for free. And the education department ensures that students go on at least one college tour starting in seventh grade. 

Still, the process can be daunting for students who did not grow up in a college-going culture. 

"I'd say the application itself — it's like a maze, a literal maze that I feel like is designed that way to weed out as much kids as possible," said Daniel Reden, a junior at Bushwick. 

Determined to attend college, he said one task on his list is convincing his mother it's a good idea.