Conceptual models developed from dropout research on traditional, residential college students were applied to the study of nontraditional students (older, mostly minority women on welfare) enrolled in a postsecondary, nondegree program (the federal Work Incentive Program). Factors that differentiate persisters from those who withdraw were examined, based on findings of previous research on college dropouts and undergraduate career socialization. Comparisons were made of dropouts and program graduates on background and individual characteristics, pretraining experiences, commitments, social and academic integration, and outside integration (e.g., effect on children). The findings suggest that the models derived from research on traditional students can be appropriate for the study of this nontraditional group. Program completion is linked to students' goal commitments and their integration into both the academic and nonacademic sectors of postsecondary educational institutions. The importance of being alert to the possibility that educational institutions are not encapsulated environments is also suggested by the findings that intrapersonal and extra-institutional integration are related to program completion. (SW)