In an effort to determine the impact of entry-level writing tests and subsequent remedial writing programs on various student ethnic populations at California's Oxnard College (OC), a study was conducted of 812 first-time students in fall 1989 who were administered the Assessment and Placement Services Exam for Community Colleges (APSECC). Of these students, 78.69% scored below college-level on the writing skills portion of the test and 38.65% subsequently enrolled in the college's remedial writing program. Study findings included the following: (1) White students performed best on the writing subtest while Asian and Black students performed least well; (2) a greater proportion of Asian and Hispanic students who scored below college-level elected to enroll in remedial writing than White students, although these differences were not shown to be statistically significant; and (3) 65.59% of the students who enrolled in remedial writing courses matriculated to at least one college-level course in the subsequent term, with Filipino and White students more likely to matriculate than other ethnic groups. Study recommendations included the following: the APSECC, last validated in 1979, should be reevaluated against a more recent standardized test instrument; OC should assess the propriety of the established cut-off scores; the college should also consider using a test that has been normed with a west coast test population; and, in view of the small proportion of students enrolling in remedial writing, a review of the college's entry-level student counseling services should be undertaken. (PAA)