A survey of new and continuing undergraduate students was undertaken at the end of 1986 to obtain information on the related issues of costs of studying and access to equipment for study purposes. Questionnaires were sent to a sample of 2,400 students at the Open University (OU)--1,200 students taking their first OU course and 1,200 continuing students. The overall response rate was 75.4%. Analyses of the student responses indicated that one third of the students (33%) have access to some kind of microcomputer than can be used for OU study purposes, of these, 18% have a microcomputer at home; male students are far more likely than female students to have access to micro equipment; the quality of access that men have to micro equipment is better than for women; and that access is best for students taking courses in mathematics, technology, or maths/science/technology. This report provides analyses of the data in both narrative and graphs for access to microcomputers by age, OU status, sex, occupation, region, and course profile. Data are also analyzed for various factors related to the use of microcomputing equipment in the home; access to a microcomputer at work; features of the microcomputer system to which students have access and their experience in using microcomputers; and the effect of the home computing policy on students' study plans. Additional survey data, a tally of student responses to seven questions on the 1986 costs/access questionnaire, and list of reports available from the Student Research Centre in the Institute of Educational Technology are appended. (2 references) (CGD)