Transition planning for students in special education is mandated by IDEA law. However as with many areas of special education, its implementation varies from school district to school district and even differs among different case managers and students within a district. Furthermore, little is known about the effectiveness of transition planning and programming for students at the high school level. Most transition research focuses on whether students are employed two years out of high school, not whether they have been successful at meeting specific goals set within their IEP's. In the competitive Northeast, that future goal is often college, therefore it is important to understand how to best transition special education students for success. Typical predictors of college success, such as SAT scores or GPA may not be as effective at predicting success among special education students and factors traditionally utilized in transition plans have been given little attention in the research. The factors mandated in New Jersey's transitional plans that best correlate to known predictors of college success include instructional activities, community activities, related services, and adult living objectives. This study begins to take an explorative look at how the four main transition activities defined by state law relate to retention at the college level in the form of degree or equivalent credits received. Instructional, Community, Related Services, and Goal Setting within the four year transitional plans of special education graduates are each evaluated along with variations among plans and performance based on disability type and severity. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com.bibliotheek.ehb.be/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]