Studies on satisfaction and performance have always attracted the interest of academicians. Continuing debate over whether performance precedes satisfaction or vice versa permeates the study of student satisfaction in American higher education. The purpose of this paper is to ascertain the relationship between satisfaction and performance and to identify the variables which influence them. Sex, age race, educational benefit, social integration, academic integration, enrollment status and residential setting, student level and grades were the major variables used in a sample of 296 students in a NSSE 2000 survey. AMOS was used in the statistical analysis. (Contains 2 models.)