As part of the Maryland Longitudinal Study of 772 students entering the University of Maryland, College Park (UMCP) in the fall of 1980, a study was conducted to determine patterns of college student employment and profiles of students in different employment categories. Findings included the following: (1) approximately 40% of students were employed in their freshman year, increasing to 75% by the fourth year, with the greatest increase in part-time employment on campus; (2) in the Representative Group (i.e., students in the 1980 freshman class who were selected through random sampling techniques and who agreed to participate), males were more likely to hold jobs than females throughout the 4 years, and employed males were more likely to work part-time off campus than employed females; (3) in the Black Group (all Black students in the 1980 freshman class who agreed to participate), such sex differences were not found; (4) in the Representative Group, commuters were more likely than campus residents to be employed, while in the Black Group, commuters were less likely to be employed; (5) unemployed students in the Representative Group earned higher grade point averages in the first 2 years than employed students, but this difference disappeared after the second year; (6) in the Black Group, students in all employment categories had grade point averages less than 2.0, but in year 2 they were above 2.0, although this increase declined later in the year for black students employed full-time off campus; and (7) each year in the Representative Group, a greater proportion of students working part-time on campus (rather than working off campus or unemployed) returned the following year. Implications of the results and suggestions for actions to assist working students are discussed. Data are presented in several tables and an appendix. Contains 4 references. (KM)