The broad area of teacher satisfaction is an important component in career decisions about teaching. Some sources of satisfaction are the joy of helping students learn, the sense of efficacy, positive relationships with colleagues, satisfactory working conditions, the leadership style of principals, and the prestige and esteem associated with teaching. The study described here examined such factors in relationship to teachers' work histories during the first 5 years after graduation from a teacher education program. Data for the study were taken from the fifth-year follow-up of a 10-year longitudinal study of teacher education graduates being conducted by the College of Education at Iowa State University. Subjects consisted of teacher education graduates (N=497) who had taught at some time during the 5 years since graduation. The sample was divided into two groups: continuous teachers (N=293) and noncontinuous teachers (N=204). Comparisons were made on such characteristics as academics and demographics, occupational characteristics, career orientation, job selection factors, performance, job satisfaction, and an evaluation of the teacher education program (five tables display these data). Results suggest that job satisfaction and a positive self-evaluation of teaching performance are pivotal factors that separate the continuous teachers from the noncontinuous teachers. (Two tables display the satisfaction and performance data.) (LL)