New-York tribune., 1903-02-10
COURSES At HARVARD.
REPORT OF PRESIDENT
PoEcy Of Maintaining High Stand
ards Urged.

F7os+on Feb a-President Eliot Of Harvard
University to-day made public his annual re-
port 10 the board OF overseers.
Hgrvard.s policy is declared by President Eliot
"a be one Of determined support 10 the require
,nenrs Of a bachelors degree. or its equivalent
for admission TO the professional schools as
row enforced in the DEPARTMENTS Of theology
law and medicine at Harvard. and to an even
higher standard than has hitherto been set lor
the degree OF = A.
President Eliot describes the recognition ana
rcouragement now given At Harvard 10 'Ie
three wears or the three and hall years COZ
lese course but he makes IT clear mat ''s
quantity Of work. measured by me lequheu
number IF courses is the same for the 'hree
years. course q for the four years course "I'i7
the quality Of work. measured by eraoeS' iiaS
haen substantially raised in the last year.
He maintains that Harvard is unshaken IN i's
ae5berAooe 20 the highest standards for no'h
UNDERGRADUATE and professional departments
and saws
T1,e faculty Of arts and sciences has now dolle
what IL can TO combat the great eNl OF 700 iate
entrance upon the professional csIeer rts,ne =,
business career j has expressed l'S i.-s.,-
for the age Of eighteen as the age i"F
college ara its conviction that boys can pe ~ ~
prepared for coileSs by that age. alu - nc a.
,rnsse i r,ossil,lo for any dgent student to get
the degree OF bachelor of arts IN three HeaLS
These tz-o measures combined should enapIe
r,arau-s 10 Get their we'll trained sons INTO the
learned professions by twenty-four or tWentH-
five years OF age. and into business 1.s,l. Valg
much earlier To effect ihese improvements,
l7nv-exer the cooperation of parents. schoolS
ane The community at large is essential hat-
nard University has 10 sympathy VIII, any any eo r
forts TO lower the STANDARD or 'ns ueSleS
bachelor Of arts or 10 substitute for IL an IN
terior degree
President Eliot prints table which shows the
proportion in nine American universities OF Ia"
and medical students holding preliminary de-
gree TO the whole number Of such stuoehts-
The percentage of degree holders, according 10
the table is as follows: Harvard, 'o1' Co
,unbia. SAC: California, ii; Pennsylvania. 500
Northwestern SIS; Chicago tnedieal ony) ""-''
Yale pa: Michigan, l5.S; Cornell, L.. Com
s7enting on tho table. /. says:
IN the higher education in America there u; Is
no more important question than this: Shall
the professional schools OF the universities con
,ir,Je 70 ne open to ureduCa ted persons or per
sons of very slight education. or SHAH they on
require for admission preliminary degree IN
ar,e o- sciencaso-r Private venture schools.
z,-i-h low requirements for admission or none
might still continue te exist. The lmportanl
question is What should the universities 90 ~
ihis matter? Harvard University has denhltelS e
determined to pursue the policy OF requiring ty'
admission to its professional schools q prelni-
nary degree. and has already applied this poll'y
TO al its professional schools. except TIE oeh'eI
school The result has been improvement IN
its professional schools striking in proportion
10 the strength Of the contrast between the for
previous training
since me wise and efficient conduct OF Ameri-
can affairs. commercial. industrial and pubic,
deuends more and moro upon the learned and
scientific professions. the universities owe II 10
The country 20 provide the hest POSSIBLE prep
sratiou for all the professions This best posi-
HE ureparatlon cpls only he given n Young men
who llp 10 their tyventy-first year had the ad-
Nantages Of continuous and progressive school
md college training.
whenever a new and higher standard of ad-
,,eeor n ar ,,rr,Ar <-a5a in ed,ca ton is set up
all he
are immediately Affected II the principal uni
versities in the United states should now de
clare that IN 1907 they should demand for dd-
mission 70 their professional schools degree in
arts or science the first effect would be TO
schools Of the country PrudenE and forelooklng
parents would say TO themselves, We nlusT
Fen5 our boys 10 z good secondary school, and
50 get them later into college or Sclentinc
school, for otherwise they viii be cut off from
2 u the learned professions 4 few years later
the colleges and scientific schools would find
their numbers increased for the same reason,
and both these effects would he highly benef
cen. The United States will lack this induce
1rent 70 thorough secondary and college train
ing for promising Youths SO long as the uni
rersitv schools for the learned professions
cpen 10 persons whose systematic education may
have ceased when they were ten or twelve years
old L is in This wav that universities can ef-
fecttvely support the preliminary degrees IN
arts and science.
After giving vital statistics ~ show that the
r ghlv educated part of the American people
Goes not increase the population at all but. on
the contrarv fails % reproduce itself. President
blict says
II is prcbs nie that the regrettable result If
due If part 10 the late postponennent Of mar
riaee on the part of educated young men,
rostponement which rhe protracted education
now prescribed for men who enter the learned
and scientific professions makes almost IN
sTcidsble
President Eliot calls attention to the interest
s7z hat the stu
cents in the Cambridge departments Of the uni
v=reitv take part IN some outdoor sports He
notes that changes IN football rules have been
followed bv an increase rather than decrease
1n injuries. and says that under the existing
rules the game tends 70 become slower and
Iess visible n its detsils and therefore less in
Tsresting He goes On 10 say
Moreover. the ethics IF the game. which ere
the imperfect ethics Of var Dc not improve
The martial axiorn--atrack the enenv's weakest
pcint-lrevltablT leads 10 the deliberate on
aiausht on the cripple or ths convalescent in the
opposing line end the habitual violation of
rules. = penalties he esCsred. Is regarded hE
MANY merely amusing
Of athletic sports m general President Eliot
tsvs there Is increasing objection 70 their great
e0sggerstton-
There IS nov. series Of competitive games
Witch covers the entire academic year and the
distraction Of large bodies Of students from the
proper work # the university grows more in
tense snJ continuous year after wear. This IN
reasonable exaggerst tioH Of sport and exercise
has become : ser1oEs drawback also
ondsYy schools Thus, many OF the schools for
tUrsteiy situated IN the country permit their
pupils tc he diverted almost entirely from the
study ~ natural history by their devotion 20 4
series of ccmpetitiNe sports which covers the
entire school year. In the college and the sCieD-
1ffic school the afternoons IF many students dur
ing far the greater part of the year are devoted
20 PLAY or 20 looking the games which the
7F1rte athletes ar