1. **State the problem:** We know that 170 students represent 85% of the total number of students in the program. We want to find the total number of students, denoted as $t$. 2. **Set up the equation:** Since 170 is 85% of $t$, we write: $$\frac{170}{t} = \frac{85}{100}$$ 3. **Solve for $t$:** Multiply both sides by $t$ to get: $$170 = t \times \frac{85}{100}$$ 4. **Isolate $t$ by dividing both sides by $\frac{85}{100}$:** $$t = \frac{170}{\frac{85}{100}}$$ 5. **Simplify the division by a fraction:** $$t = 170 \times \frac{100}{85}$$ 6. **Calculate the multiplication:** $$t = \frac{170 \times 100}{85}$$ 7. **Simplify the fraction by canceling common factors:** $$t = \frac{\cancel{170} \times 100}{\cancel{85}} = 2 \times 100 = 200$$ 8. **Final answer:** The total number of students in the program is $\boxed{200}$. This means there are 200 students in total, and 170 of them (which is 85%) went on to attend college.