This paper reports on a large-scale project of research and evaluation of a program for disadvantaged minority group students conducted by the Center for Educational Opportunity at the Claremont Colleges. The Program of Special Directed Studies for Transition to College (PSDS), a five-year experimental project, is aimed at providing a four-year, high quality college education for educationally and economically disadvantaged minority group students. Forty students were admitted in 1968 with full financial support. A three-week orientation program tailored their course load to their abilitie s and interests, with adequate and individualized counseling. Two years are allowed to qualify for regular admission with no grades recorded on the permanent transcript during this time. The research intrinsic to the program is for the purposes of: (1) investigating the consequences of special collegiate arrangements; (2) evaluating and accounting for areas of success and failure; (3) making research available locally and nationally; and, (4) providing bases for desirable changes in PSDS and other programs. The research design is a pre-test, post-test control group allowing for analysis of test scores. The multivariate definition of "success" and evaluative measures to be used are included. (Authors/DM)