The findings suggest that school excludees are developing a lifestyle in which illicit drug use is becoming an inherent activity. In addition, many of the school excludees have developed a high propensity to antisocial behavior compared with their peers in mainstream education. As all study participants were excluded from school, they were not accessing school-based prevention programs delivered to their contemporaries at school suggesting that additional and specialized resources are required to fully meet their needs. Little is known about the experience of young people excluded from school during adolescence compared to their peers who remain in school. This study offers an opportunity to directly compare the experience of school excludees and those in mainstream school that are the same age. Seventy-six young people excluded from school in the Greater Belfast area at school year 11, ages 14-15 years, were identified for inclusion in the study because they were attending alternative education projects rather than mainstream school. Participants completed a questionnaire investigating the drug use and antisocial behaviors of these study participants excluded from school. Tables, references