Researchers conducted a longitudinal study of achievement goals and ability measures to investigate the predictors of academic success over the course of 471 students' college careers. First, researchers examined which variables that were important in predicting students' interest and performance in an introductory psychology course taken in their first semester in college. Then, researchers followed students until they graduated to examine long-term consequences in terms of continued interest in psychology courses and subsequent performance in psychology classes. Achievement goals and ability measures each contributed unique variance in predicting initial and long-term outcomes. Ability measures, however, were only linked to academic performance outcomes, but achievement goal measures were linked to both interest and performance outcomes. The impact of achievement goals, ability, and initial experiences in introductory college courses is discussed. (Contains 1 table, 3 figures, and 11 references.) (Author/SLD)