According to a report from the University of New Mexico (UNM) 52 percent of Del Norte High School's (Albuquerque) graduates who entered UNM in the fall of 1979 were placed in at least one Basic Skills class, designed to assist beginning students whose American College Test (ACT) scores showed deficient college preparation in raising their academic achievement to college entrance standards. In response, Del Norte undertook a study of its graduates who were (1) in the UNM Basic Skills program, or (2) exempted from the Basic Skills program. Their high school records were reviewed along three dimensions--factual descriptors, overall achievement, and high school curricular factors--and analyzed statistically. Major findings and their implications are discussed. (Author/GK)