Interviews and questionnaires were administered to black students and black and white faculty and administrators at seven universities to identify the principal problems related to the retention of black undergraduate students in higher educational institutions and to propose program alternatives and strategies for their retention and graduation from college. Poor academic preparation in secondary schools appears to be the main barrier to access to higher education at the universities studied. Once admitted, students tend to attribute academic failure to cultural/racial adjustment, financial problems, loneliness and alienation, hostility from white faculty and students, lack of counseling help, scarcity of black faculty models, and poor communication with black faculty. Recommendations are made regarding the responsibilities of predominantly white institutions in assuring access and graduation opportunities to black students in the following areas: admissions policies, recruitment, pre-college programs, orientation, counseling, cultural adjustment, white faculty/administrators, black faculty/administrators, contact with faculty, financial assistance, topics for further study, and data availability. (MK)