The purpose of this research is to identify any differences in the academic engagement of Hispanic students enrolled in a developmental course compared to those enrolled in a retention initiative course. Researchers proposed that personal interests and perceptions of instrumentality to future goals would help develop, guide, and direct successful academic engagement. The participants (N = 407) were Hispanic college freshmen. MANCOVA and SEM were employed to examine whether group differences emerged. Analyses revealed perceptions of instrumentality were a stronger predictor of self-regulation for nondevelopmental course students than for developmental education students.