COMMERCE AND THE COLLEGES.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 1160, 22 June 1911, Page 6

COMMERCE AND THE COLLEGES.

■ «• ACCOUNTANCY EXAMINATIONS. A NEW SCHEME. At the meeting of the Victoria Co!leg® Council last night, llio Finance Coiwnitlee submitted a memorandum iron) the Professorial Board, and recommended that provision bo made for teachiic all subjects of tho commerce degree, and that a conference be held, witlj represeuUtivoa of the "City Council, the Chamber of Commerce, the Employers' Assoc.ation, the Industrial Association, and tlii New Zealand Society of Accountants, w;th llio view of obtaining practical assistance from thofs bodies. Mr. Von iiaast said that the dtgree of bachelor of Commerce had been :'u existence l<?r some time, but had only been taken by two students—ollo at Victoria College and 0110 at Auckland. It was too purely academic to meet the reqtiremenls of the commercial community, aad it waa ' not until the .New Zealand Sockty of Accountants becamo incorporated end began to conleniplalo entrusting the accountancy examinations to the university that it seemed to take practical shape, and there appeared to be a hope of getting tho TOmmcrcial community and university into touch. Ho had conferred with Professor Higlit, llio only professor of tho subjects of the commerce degree, and aa a result a new way of arranging tho courso was suggested, so that it would ba possible for a student to take tho sul>jeclSi to qualify him as an accountant, and then go on to the Bachelor of Commerce degree by Inking the compulsory subjects for that degree. Also, it would 1 lie possible for a candidate for tho Bachelor of Commerce degree to eo arrange the optional subjects that he would be qualified to become an accountant. Hitherto, when an nccoantant came to the university, he got 110 credit for llio ivork he had done in qualifying for his profession, and, similarly, if a Bachelor' of Commerce wished to become an accountant, lie had had to pass-in all subjects over again. Tho Accountants' Society wanted their students to have the advantage of a university education, and several conferences had taken place between the accountants and the professors, with tlie result that the latter had submitted tho scheme embodied in their memorandum. Mr. Von "Haast went on to argue that, there was 110 reason why such teaching should not be given at Victoria College, as well as at other university colleges." The Society of Accountants had written to each of llio University colleges, offering monetary assistance in (his matter, provided a subsidy was given by the Government. Mr. 11. D. Bell. I\.C., said that he was opposed to any subvention to the council nr the college from outside funds. He did not object to any endowment, but ho considered there was a danger that, if the council made an appointment in.veli- ' a nee upon funds from outside, those funds , might by and by not bo forthcoming, i He thought the council should not rely ! upon covenants with tho Chamber of | Commerce or the Accountants'" Society, because they could not be sure of the per- : manency pf those bodies,- The rule ha was enunciating was followed in most of the universities of the world. The council decided to postpone consideration of the matter for one month, in order to enable members lo consider the, . memorandum of the Professorial Board.