The academic careers of City University of New York (CUNY) freshmen who enrolled during the initial years of the open-admissions policy were studied. For 1970, 1971, and 1972 entrants, educational attainments were measured through 1984. Attention was directed to: rates of graduation for undergraduate degrees after 12 or more years; how students accumulated credentials at various time intervals; the success of community college entrants in earning bachelor's degrees; and the proportions earning masters and professional degrees. Open-admissions students were compared with regular students who did not need the program to qualify for a place at CUNY. Since CUNY's policy was designed to expand educational opportunity for disadvantaged minority groups, data were assessed for the major ethnic constituencies of CUNY's entering classes (White, Black, and Hispanic students). Data were examined separately for CUNY's senior and community colleges. The effects of changes in financial aid on educational attainments were also considered. It was found that about 20% of regular students needed more than 5 years to earn the bachelor's degree, while among the open-admissions students, 40% needed more than 5 years to finish. (SW)