UNIVERSITY SPECIALISATION.

Dominion, Volume 2, Issue 417, 28 January 1909, Page 4

UNIVERSITY SPECIALISATION.

•., THE; Chancellor of the University '(Sin j Robert Stput) andthd Inspector-General of Schools,(Me.- G..HoQBBN);did the right ;thing in.opp6sirig::a;proposition brought 'before the. Senate by, the Auckland.University College .tending',to undermine, the system,of ; specialisation'>'• in professional subjects.-which has.been laid ; d'own for the affiliated 'colleges.of the' University.;. 'The, Auckland,resolution ; .was,' ''-That the Senate; .be> asked, toj recognise- 4 the teaching rgiv'en at University. College' fori.the. first professional year of' engineer- : ing: (civil,.mechanical, and Electrical)." It .was oxplained that of the six subjects required .for-the first, year's: examination of : the; B.E. .degree, ipur subjects connected 1 .with mjriing and; metallurgy, .are already taught: at; Auckland,' arid recognition was asked' for ;■ teaching iri; the other subjects affecting; : - technical ; chemistry, ; applied mechanics, and the mechanic's, of 'machinery.;;- The objection .-to the request lies in the fact.that'if four University"Colleges, ina 'young and sparsely populated' 'country,' ; are' to ,do professibnal, .wbrk of any' yahie,. it. is. essential.;that: they. must. ■ specialise^and" concentrate, and ■ Canterbury College has already a School of Engineering on which money has been lavished to. make its expensive appliances as' modern and .comprehensive as possible. A New;;; Zealand. Bachelor ; of•. Engineer- j •ingC.,:who.;; recently .■.. went' ';'. over ;' tho 'engineering 7 ' /schoolv ! of.'■ ; tho,, ;Univer-.j Bity;;. ';of ;>■: .London,'.. '■■■ declared . that in many:respects the equipment'.of. this kind;at Canterbury College is more date! and.lusoful.,; This, result could -not; have been achieved excepting by thb'system' of specialisation in professional subjects, which, would; make' Auckland Col-' lege-devote its principal attention and funds to mining studies, Victoria College to a school of.law, .Canterbury.College to engineering, and Otago to medicine. Me. Hooben; pointed put that to establish four engineering schools'—arid, if, there is to be, more than one, there might as well be four as:two—would'require a, capital expenditure .of ■£200,0q0,.0r.a..t0ta1 ; annual .expenditure in interest, salaries, arid other purposes of at least £12,000.. A University which is not rich in endowments would hardly advance far in its work of education'if it were to go upon these reckless lines. :.Me. Hogben :also, stated .what is , apparent" to: most" other people, ■■ when he said that' the number )of ,%ngirieers required in ; New -Zealand would not warrant, such, a ..large 'expenditure, It, is doubtful whether, with the present facilities, the popular pursuit of engineering in the' Doininion is not in danger of being overdone. Of course it would be a convenience to a fow engineering Btudents in Auckland to be able; to take; their .first year's'professional' course in the northern city, but this, would only defer for one. short year their: ultimate migration, and, aj ■ the Inspector-General .suggested,•, a scheme of scholarships might.be provided to mitigate the expense of. inter-collegiate travel to such students.. A movement formed'in'Ohristchurchto extend the Canterbury College engineering .school : ,to' mining was opposed by tho Professor of Engineering, and there is'reason how to oppose the northern proposal'to supplement the Auckland; School of Mines with an engineering course. The strongest reason is the'one given by the Chancellor, in his argumont in support of specialisation^

at the colleges. It is a reason which the committee to whom the Auckland application was referred should regard as conclusive when considering its recommendation, and it is a.reason of which the spirit applies most forcibly to other' matters than.education. "There could not," said Sin Eobert Stout, "b'c schools in each centre without a cost to the Dominion 'that it: could not stand. We did not realiso that, after all, we were a small colony';:' and that strict economy and very little taxation would 'shove- us along better than any scheme yet propounded by any Parliament of New Zealand." ;