This paper surveys and evaluates the research since 1975 on college and university student suicidality in the United States. It focuses on factors which contribute to suicidality, preventive responses to suicide and how well the preventive responses address the contributing factors. Contributing factors examined include various feeling states (depression, helplessness, loneliness), stress, religiosity, and family factors. A review of multiple factor studies explores social desirability; family problems and feeling states; roles of cognitive rigidity and life stress; the interaction of helplessness, hopelessness, and interpersonal attachments; and the interactions of cognitive, social, and emotional factors with stress. Depression, hopelessness, helplessness, and loneliness were usually present in combination in the suicidal samples studied, with hopelessness appearing to be the best predictor of more lethal behavior. Preventive responses reviewed include both interpersonal interactions and university-structured programs in formal and informal settings. The generalizability of research findings is discussed and areas of further study are delineated. A need is seen for studies which assess the effects of prevention measures on specific contributing factors as well as on suicidality in general. It is noted that most of the studies reviewed need to be replicated using nationwide samples from a wider variety of institutions in order to increase generalization of results to the national population. (65 references) (NB)