As part of a series of studies on the long-term academic outcomes of fall 1990 first-time freshmen, Maryland's Prince George's Community College (PGCC) undertook an analysis of the cohort to determine the role of race or ethnicity as a predictor of academic achievement after four years. Academic achievers were defined as those students who had received an associate degree or other award, transferred to a senior institution, or were sophomores in good standing. The analysis, based on outcomes of 2,643 first-time freshmen, revealed the following: (1) white cohort members were two and a half times more likely to reach achiever status after four years than non-white members; (2) while racial background was the most powerful single predictor of achievement of all social and educational background variables, it counted for only seven percent of the total variance of achiever classification; (3) student gender, age, marital status, immediate or delayed entry after high school were found to be low level predictors of achievement; and (4) racial background as a predictor of success was almost entirely a function of how different racial groups functioned academically, with white students concentrated in processes that enhanced success, and black students concentrated in opposite processes. Data tables are included. (BCY)