The Press MONDAY, JANUARY 21, 1935. B.A. (Int.), B.A. (Ext.)

Press, Volume LXXI, Issue 21377, 21 January 1935, Page 12

The Press MONDAY, JANUARY 21, 1935. B.A. (Int.), B.A. (Ext.)

There were faintly ridiculous elements in the University Senate's discussion of the problem of the extramural student and the status of the degree extra-murally won. The Rector of Canterbury College brought forward and moved a recommendation of the Academic Board, that diplomas should be marked "external" whenever the graduate had been exempted from attending lectures in more than four, units of his course. Dr. Hight was "not wholly in favour of the proposal himself," he was not sure if the public would take much notice of the warning endorsement, and he did not attempt to say why a student exempted for four units should come off with a clean diploma, while one exempted for five should have to take his with an official smudge on it. No doubt Dr. Hight moved the resolution more or less formally as the Academic Board's representative, and realised that the line it proposes to draw is a rather arbitrary one, so falling between Jones and Smith as to be too kind to one and too hard on the other. Perhaps it was the sort of logic to be expected, in the circumstances, that led the Vice-Chancel-lor, Professor Hunter, to propose the certification of the internal student's diploma; but to recommend it with the rubber-stamp, "internal." when four units have been gained extramurally, and to leave it blank and unblessed for one more, is to draw the same sort of arbitrary line again. If its'purpose is to show that one degreje is better than another, or has been more fully and profitably earned, then it may still very easily wrong Smith and flatter Jones. It may have been Professor Hunter's object to bring this out, ironically; at any rate he has done so. But although both resolution and amendment were defeated —the resolution very narrowly—the question survives the humours of the debate. Very few critics and friends of the University will doubt that its extra-mural regulations are so liberal as to be abused; and that the abuse is one of the considerable reasons for describing the University as an examination-shop. The extramural regulations are those of its mail-order department. Sooner or later, and better soon than late, the University will have to decide in its own best interest to be less liberal and more exacting. If the individual will have to make sacrifices sometimes instead of receiving concessions, this will not be wholly and always something to cry about.