Through a study, strategies were investigated to increase the role of in-school youth in creating job opportunities. Drawing upon qualitative data provided by the Youthwork National Policy Study, researchers examined four youth-operated employment projects in order to isolate those factors that either hinder or facilitate the implementation of a youth participation strategy; they subsequently made recommendations on how best to implement a strategy for youth participation. Two factors that especially seemed to inhibit youth participation were the location of the project in a traditional school setting and the failure to encourage youth to take an active role in managing the project. Included among those factors found to promote the youth participation strategy were the following: a high ratio of adults to youth, the delegation of authority for the everyday activities of the project to the youth involved in it, relatively small numbers (10 or less) of youth working together, and access within the community to persons with expertise in the area of youth enterprise. Recommendations included a call for hiring staff members partly on the basis of their commitment to the idea that youth can and should manage their own affairs. (MN)