In an effort to assess community college students' knowledge of the liberal arts, the Center for the Study of Community Colleges developed and field-tested a student survey and General Academic Assessment (GAA) instrument. The GAA was completed by a sample of 8,024 students at four large, urban community college districts. The scores were cross tabulated by selected student characteristic variables (e.g., age, ethnicity, native language, and reason for attending college) and selected educational background variables (e.g., the number of college units already completed by the student, and the number of English courses the student had taken prior to the GAA test). On the literacy section of the GAA, which assessed student ability in English grammar, punctuation, and reading ability, older students scored slightly higher than younger students. Not surpisingly, native language seemed an important factor in a student's ability to use English. Students attending college to satisfy personal interest scored higher on the literacy section than those intending to transfer or receiving occupational training. There appeared to be a positive correlation between the number of semester hours completed and scores on the literacy section of the GAA. A positive correlation was revealed between the number of English courses taken and the students' GAA literacy scores. (EJV)