It has been claimed that perceived academic control (AC) in combination with preoccupation with failure (PWF) produces a strong motivation for success, and the interaction (AC x PWF) has been shown to predict academic achievement. In a prospective study, 442 first year psychology students completed a questionnaire about their background, study habits, AC, and PWF. The results showed a positive main effect of AC on academic achievement, but no main effect of PWF was found on academic achievement. The interaction (AC x PWF) was not related to academic achievement. There were no main effects of AC or PWF on study hours. However, the interaction effect (AC x PWF) indicated that among students scoring low on AC, those with high PWF worked more (24.4 hours per week) than those with low PWF (20.9 hours per week). Among those with high AC, no difference on study hours was found between those scoring low and high on PWF. (Contains 1 table and 1 figure.)