In fall 1969, the University of Minnesota Medical School implemented a new curriculum and the option for students of graduation in either 3 or 4 years as an experiment designed to decrease the shortage of practicing physicians. The purpose of this paper is to describe similarities and differences between 3 and 4 year graduates. The results of the study suggest that there are essentially no differences between 3 and 4 year students in entrance scores, demographic data, academic performance during the first 2 years of medical school, or scores on a nationally standardized basic sciences certification examination. There may be a tendency for the 2 groups to differ on clinical competence or knowledge of clinical sciences; however, other factors exist that could explain these findings. (Author/HS)