In considering participation of Hispanic students in higher education, focus is on racial and ethnic data available, research on Hispanic students, education litigation and legal issues impacting on Hispanics, and recruitment. Though Hispanic enrollments in higher education have increased, high concentration of full-time undergraduates in two-year colleges (least-prestigious, least-funded institutions) carries resulting inequities. Graduate and professional enrollments are even bleaker than undergraduate statistics. Factors impacting on Hispanic participation in higher education include the shortage of highly trained Hispanic personnel to serve as catalysts for change and role models, lack of a federal policy on Hispanic higher education, few high level Hispanic appointments to agencies affecting national educational policy making, and little research attention to Hispanic students. Three research areas which do offer guides to improved access are models of student profiles, institutional research and marketing models, and Chicano student stress research. Legislative remedies are needed on census data and Title III administration, while legal issues include residency, desegregation, testing, and admissions. Improved recruitment is tied to surveys of Hispanic populations, examination of internal policies hampering Hispanics, use of Hispanic students in recruitment/monitoring, cultural awareness, and better support systems. (RS)