UAlbany Senior Makes TV Debut as "Millionaire" Contestant

 

UAlbany senior Stephanie Ferreira kept a secret from friends, family and classmates for months. Finally, it came time for her to tell. The Long Island native won $10,000 as a contestant on the popular TV game show, Who Wants To Be A Millionaire.

Her secret was revealed on Monday, when the taped show aired with Ferreira in the hot seat, fielding trivia questions from Millionaire host Meredith Vieira. Ferreira didn�t tell anyone about the impending appearance, except her boyfriend and parents who were in the show�s audience.

She had tried twice before to become a contestant on the show, taking tests both in person and online, last summer. In the fall, the third time was the charm. Two weeks before the taping, Ferreira got a phone call while in class. She called the number back and reached a producer at the show who said they were ready to schedule it.

�Of all the shows, that�s the show. I was so excited,� says Ferreira, a linguistics major and self-described trivia enthusiast. �But I tried to keep it under wraps as long as possible in case it didn�t go well.�

Fortunately, it did.

Last October, Ferreira traveled to New York City for the taping. On the train ride down, she lugged a �big fat� trivia book with her, hoping to soak up every last morsel of knowledge she could.

�Greek gods, authors, presidents � I didn�t even know what to study,� chuckles Ferreira.

She arrived at the New York City studios to begin a day of tours, paperwork, meetings with the show�s publicists and lawyers and practice questions. Finally, it was time for the show. Ferreira started out in the audience, even participated in an �Ask the Audience� lifeline for the first contestant.

Then, it was her turn. After a brief introduction and chat with Vieira, Ferreira was asked her first question: �In 1776, the name of our country was changed to the United States of America from the United �what� of America?�

Ferreira answered correctly with choice A � Colonies. Then, it was quickly onto the next question. Seven questions and two lifelines later, Ferreira was on a roll, until the $12,500 question: �A regular on MTV's �The Hills,� Brody Jenner is the son of a famous Olympian who won a gold medal for what sport?

Ferreira was confronted with the decision every contestant dreads -- is now the time to walk away? Having already won $10,000 � and with only 30 seconds to decide -- Ferreira did just that.

�It goes by so quickly. The first five questions took only seconds,� says Ferreira, who plans to pursue a master�s in elementary education at UAlbany after graduation. �And of course there�s some regret about use of lifelines.�

And while Ferreira didn�t become a millionaire, she is happy with how it all turned out. The game show stint will help Ferreira with a down payment on a house, she said, as well as pay for DNA testing for her two rescued mutts.

It also gave her a new way of saying goodbye.

�See you on TV,� she says with a smile and wave.

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