THE RECORD OF EVERY FIFTH OFFICER HIRED BY THE DEPARTMENT (A SAMPLE OF 1,534) WAS REVIEWED, AND RELATIONSHIPS OF PRIOR EDUCATION TO OTHER SOCIAL CHARACTERISTICS AND TO CAREER PATTERNS WERE EXAMINED. IN ADDITION, OFFICERS WHO JOINED THE FORCE FROM 1947 TO 1970 AND WHO REMAINED WITHIN THE RANKS AS OF FALL 1975 WERE ASKED ABOUT THEIR ATTITUDES TOWARD THEIR JOBS. FROM 1940 TO 1970, THE EDUCATIONAL LEVEL OF POLICE RECRUITS GENERALLY REFLECTED THAT OF THE GENERAL PUBLIC. SHIFTS IN THE EDUCATIONAL LEVEL OF RECRUITS REFLECTED EXTERNAL PRESSURES (THE JOB MARKET, COMPETITIVE SALARIES IN THE PRIVATE SECTOR, THE WARTIME DRAIN ON THE MALE POPULATION) RATHER THAN AN ANTIEDUCATION ATTITUDE OR POLICY IN THE POLICE DEPARTMENT. THERE WAS LITTLE CLASS DIFFERENCE BETWEEN RECRUITS WHO WERE COLLEGE EDUCATED AND THOSE WHO WERE NOT. REGARDLESS OF EDUCATIONAL LEVEL, MOST RECRUITS CAME FROM THE LOWER AND LOWER-MIDDLE SOCIOECONOMIC CLASSES. THERE WAS NO ASSOCIATION BETWEEN PRIOR EDUCATION AND CAREER ADVANCEMENT. NOR WAS THERE A STATISTICALLY SIGNIFICANT ASSOCIATION BETWEEN EDUCATION AND ATTITUDES TOWARD POLICING, THE USE OF FORCE, PROTECTION OF CIVIL LIBERTIES, AND OTHER WORK-RELATED VARIABLES. THE FINDINGS CHALLENGE SOME COMMONLY HELD ASSUMPTIONS ABOUT THE EFFECTS OF COLLEGE EDUCATION ON POLICE PERSONNEL. SUPPORTING DATA ARE INCLUDED. (AUTHOR ABSTRACT MODIFIED--LKM)