A study was conducted at the City University of New York (CUNY) to identify the variables that distinguish students who persist through their first and into their second year of college from those who drop out along the way. Retention survey forms were sent to 2,063 students admitted to career programs in fall 1979 and to 3,291 students admitted in fall 1978 seeking information on demographics, prior college attendance, educational aspirations, reasons for enrolling in and remaining in college, satisfaction with schooling, assessment of services, and reasons for dropping out. Responses from 412 of the 1979 sample, including 383 persisters and 29 non-persisters, and from 298 of the 1978 sample, including 230 persisters and 68 non-persisters, revealed that: (1) the non-persister did not differ from the CUNY persister in terms of age, sex, or marital or family status; (2) while the majority of both groups lived with their family, a larger proportion of non-persisters lived alone or with friends; (3) the two groups differed significantly in terms of educational aspirations, with the persisters having higher goals; and (4) among the most significant variables predicting CUNY applicants' enrollment decisions were whether the curriculum was perceived as relating to their career goals; the geographical locations of their first-choice college; and whether respondents reported needing remedial courses. Appendices include the survey instrument and a comparison of 1979 persisters and non-persisters. (HB)