This book contains eight papers on a study of the effects of academic career magnetic education on high schools and their graduates. "Introduction" (Robert L. Crain) explains the study's objectives and methodology, which included an analysis of data files on 9,176 students who applied to 59 different academic career magnet education and interviews with 110 applicants to 4 different all-magnet high schools, 30 respondents to a survey of high school students, and 14 career magnet graduates. The titles of the remaining papers, which explore possible reasons why some career magnet programs promote academic achievement whereas others interfere with academics, are as follows: "Career Magnet Graduation Rates" (Robert L. Crain, Robert Thaler); "The Academic Effects of Career Magnets" (Robert Thaler, Robert L. Crain); "The Design of Career Magnet Programs and Students' Experience of High School" (Debora Sullivan, Judith Warren Little); "Career Magnet Schools: Effects on Student Behavior and Perceived Parental Support: Part One" (Gail L. Zellman, Denise D. Quigley); "Career Magnet Schools: Effects on Student Behavior and Perceived Parental Support: Part Two" (Robert L. Crain); "Placing the School-to-Work Transition in the Context of Adolescent Development" (Anna Allen); and "Conclusions" (Robert L. Crain). The book contains a total of 80 references and 32 tables/figures. Appended are additional notes on the study methodology and a discussion of using the experimental results to estimate the impact of career magnets on students. (MN)