Results of three studies conducted at Clayton Junior College, Georgia, concerning differences between traditional and nontraditional age students relative to academic success and persistence are discussed. In the first two studies discriminant analyses were used to determine the influence of age in relation to other entering characteristics on persistence and academic success. Age was found to be negatively related to persistence for students in the regular academic program and positively related for those in a developmental program. The results of the third study, in which discriminant analysis was used, indicated that older (age 25 and older) students differed from their younger (age 17 to 19) counterparts in relation to entering goals, levels of goal commitment, and expectations for college experience. The older students who entered the regular academic program in the fall of 1976 were more successful academically than their younger counterparts; however, the attrition rate of the older students was higher. Older students seemed to be more certain of their goals than the traditional age students. The older students had a more positive image of the college and seemed to view the college primarily as a place to take courses rather than for social life. The possibility that there are different program and service needs of students based on age is noted. (SW)