The Press. SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 7. 1903. DEGREES IN COMMERCE.

Press, Volume LX, Issue 11502, 7 February 1903, Page 6

The Press. SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 7. 1903. DEGREES IN COMMERCE.

At the present time when various reason* are being assigned for the alleged commercial decadence of England, it may *» interesting to our readers to be reminded

that one of the great conunerciai centres of England haa lately acquired a University charter for the granting of degrees, and that among those degrees is % one which wdl henceforth be known aa the degree ot Bachelor in Commerce or B. Comm. Perhaps the full short designation <would be B. Comm. 8., Bachelor of Commerce of Birmingham. For our own part we should be inclined to think that Bachelor of Commercial Science would he a better term, and a glance at the curriculum provided for the candidates for this degree rather confirms us in this opinion. Tlie course includes (to quote the words of tne calendar) " subjects whioh are primarily of "concern to the future man of business, "but which are neverthefess capable °* " being made the instruments of a true "education," as well as "subject* which "have long been recognised as elements "of liberal culture, and yet are peculiarly

'' valuable for those who are to b» engaged "in commerce and manufacture." The hope which is here held out of <x>mbining liberal with commercial education will depend for its realisation entirely trp°n tne way in which the examinations are conducted. We may safely assume that the great majority of candidotee who enter for this course will take it up for itfl commercial value, and not for any value as a liberal education which may incidentally belong to - it. They will study their subjects from the point of view of w"hat will " pay" commercially, and from no other point of view, unless the examinations are so conducted as to give a large value in marks to the' purely educational portion ot their subjects. On the other hand, if this is done there is danger that the course will fail to induce any large number of those who mean to engage in commerce to do more than take up only •that portion of it which bears directly on a commercial career. But even if they do this we think the gain will be great. For the University of Birmingham does not conceive of the term commerce in any narrow fashion. A briei account of the course in commerce, pure and simple, will show this. The first twa years are taken up with the study of the "modern development and the present "structure and uosition of industry and " trade in the leading countries ■of the " world. This will involve a consideration "of geographical position and natural re"sources, of the supply and organisation "of capital and labour, and of the state "of the mechanical arts, and will lead up " to a critical account of international com- " mercial relations." The .third year is devoted to what is called "Bwiness Policy " in its main principles, as indicated by industrial and commercial enterprises, and deals among other studies with the " Location and laying out of works and offices," " Combination of Manufacturers or Merchants," " Advantages ana Dieadvantages of Private and Public Companies, , " Financial and Industrial Consequences oi Machinery, ,, " Markets," "Relation of Selling Price to Cost," "Trade Cycles," etc., f But this is by no means all. Under the head of " PuMio Finance," candidate* will be enabled to etudy the " National, ' "County, and Municipal Experience of Great " Britain," the prinoiplee and methods oi taxation, and the " methods of contracting "and extinguishing publio debt." "Transport" is another branch of study, including the consideration of the forces influencing railway rates. The "attempts "of various governments to control or '"manage railways" also come in for explanation and criticism. Under "Money and Banking" the Englieh banking system in studied and compared with that of theUnited States and Germany; also *&° phenomena of international exchange. We particularly note that under the subject of statistics special stress is laid on the "mechanism for securing information employed in each case, and the extent to " which the results are of value," also "con"sideratkth of ways in which they might "be rendered more serviceable." With regard to the subject of "Accounting," as it is called, it is to be noted that less than half of tue three yeare , course is devoted to the mechanism of accounting, and after that *' the work of •'ike course will be directed to iU higher "purpose, to give students a grasp of prin"cipies, which shall enable them to com- " prebend the significance of account* and "understand the process by which the "earnings and valoee of industrial proper- " ties' are computed. . . .A number of "published balance-sheets will be studied, "and students will be set exercises in their " interpretation." So far for the purely commercial part of the course. It includes also subsidiary subjects, a certain, number of which must be taken, such ac languages, mathematics, science, history, and sociology. But as we have already remarked, if the rising generation of commercial men could get such a thorough training in commerce alone the gain would be great to the Empire. When we think of the ridiculous blunders that are made by public men (many of whom ere what are called "business" men), by reason of their ignorance of history, political economy and the principles of commerce, it seems strange that hitherto in this age of competitive ex- ! animations no previous "test of ability has been required from them. Now that commercial and "modern" education k beginning to be attainable, is it a counsel of perfection to hope that something may yet be done in this direction?