After an agonizing wait for college acceptance letters, Blair, Serena, Nate, and their classmates at elite Manhattan prep schools discover that their college choice depends a lot on relationships--old and new.

During her junior year basketball season, D.J. faces the dual challenges of college recruiting and romance.

Eighteen-year-old David Ellison, a senior at Oak Fields Preparatory School which is only a few miles away from the Stanford University campus, tries to reconcile his desire to attend Juillard instead of an Ivy League university as is expected of him, while also wondering why he seems dissatisfied with his long-term girlfriend after being cast opposite an interesting new student in the school play.