Must an American Indian become white oriented to succeed in an institution of higher education in today's American society? The purpose of this paper was to lend insight into this question by examining the differences in the attitudes and values of American Indians and non-Indians attending a large western university. The premise upon which the authors based their observations was that there was no significant difference between Indians and non-Indians in the value they placed on education, their problems in school, their grade-point averages, their reported absences, and their feelings about racial discrimination. A survey was distributed at random to 110 students from a large, private western university, a university with one of the nation's leading Indian education programs, in order to determine the validity of the authors' premise. The attitude survey indicated that Indians tended to value their education more than non-Indians do, that Indian students were still aware of their background, and that their ties to their home culture were still great. It was concluded that successful Indian students had not become completely white oriented. Results of the survey are presented in the form of percentages in 3 tables--Population Description, Indian and Non-Indian Comparison, and Conditions Affecting Academic Standing. (FF)