Proceedings of a 1980 conference in Australia on the problems of first-year students, which focus on student discontinuation, are presented. The contents include three papers, discussion group reports, and a report on the outcome of the discussion groups, policy proposals, and recommendations. In "First Year Students: Selection and Attrition," J. F. Scott considers student selection, attrition, and dropout prevention. It is noted that a working party on attrition is seeking to find a system to promote the collection of progress statistics. In "Studies of First Year Students at the University of New South Wales," J. P. Powell suggests that the transition from school to university is substantially different from what the students had anticipated, and that choice of course, motivation, and the quality of the university experience appear to be the most important factors influencing decisions to withdraw. In "Proposed Solutions to Some Acknowledged Problems," Clive Williams outlines proposals that focus on students and their preparation and those that focus on the university experience. Discussion group reports address the following topics: pre-enrollment issues, nonacademic and academic transition problems, function of the first-year course, and educational responsibilities of universities. (SW)