The purpose of the study was to determine whether the Readiness for Education At a Distance Indicator (READI) assessment tool could predict student success in an online basic communication course through a comparison of students' scores on the READI assessment to students' final grade point average (GPA) in an online course. The population of the study consisted of seven online communication courses at two community colleges in the state of Texas, with 210 students enrolled. The primary research instrument was the Readiness for Education At a Distance Indicator (READI) assessment produced by DECADE Consulting, LLC which required students to respond to a series of questions in the following six categories: Personal Attributes, Learning Styles, Reading Rate and Recall, Technical Competency, Technical Knowledge, and Typing Speed. The study included a comparison of final grades with results from the READI assessment scores and an open-ended questionnaire to provide detailed insight to the students' experiences with the online communication course. A Mann-Whitney U, a Chi Square test, was employed to analyze the data. Responses to the open-ended questions were coded by common themes that emerged from the answers provided. After analyzing the data, the researcher found that no significant differences existed between students' READI assessment scores and final course grades. Although the READI assessment was not a good predictor of student success in any of the categories (Personal Attributes, Learning Styles, Reading Rate and Recall, Technical Competency, Technical Knowledge, and Typing Speed), participants who completed the follow-up survey believed that time management had the greatest impact on their performance in the online communication course. The updated version of the READI assessment, SmarterMeasure, includes a new category called Life Factors that includes more questions aimed to discover whether a student has ample time to commit to completing an online course. The researcher recommends conducting a follow-up study using SmarterMeasure to determine if the updated version of the assessment tool serves as a better predictor of which students will be successful in online classes. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]