Using a sample of 738 students from 4 metropolitan universities--University of Alabama at Birmingham, University of Louisville (Kentucky), University of North Carolina at Charlotte, and Wichita State University (Kansas), data from Pace's College Student Experience Questionnaire, and a modified form of Pascarella's general causal model, a study assessed the effects of background characteristics, differential college environments, and individual effort on student gains in intellectual and social skills. The model was augmented with variables descriptive of urban students, such as: part-time or full-time enrollment status, non-traditional or traditional age, on/off campus living arrangements, and marital status. The study found that such student background characteristics had no direct effects on gains, but they did have indirect effects via effort and environmental conditions. Overall, the study findings suggest that, in order to increase gains, non-traditional students at metropolitan universities must be approached by academic and student affairs professionals in ways different than their traditional counterparts at residential colleges. Appendices provide lists of College Student Experiences Questionnaire effort scales, environment scales, and estimate of gains scores. Contains 23 references. (Author/GLR)