Research findings at the Center for the Study of Higher Education, University of California, Berkeley, reveal that adequate data for meaningful research on talented women are unavailable. The findings also imply that (1) the most talented and creative college women apparently leave colleges in which they first enrolled before the end of four years, and (2) potentially talented college women limit their goals because of predominantly male-oriented educational environments. Research guidelines are included which focus on more effective identification and education of students who possess either special talents, superior ability, or both, in order to arrive at methods for promoting optimum individual development during a time span ranging from early pre-adolescent years through mature adulthood. Specific study possibilities are suggested with emphasis on problem areas in a variety of research situations. Approaches to existing data resources, as well as new sources for meaningful data collection, are proposed. (WM)