MEDICAL STUDENTS

Wairarapa Times-Age, 23 February 1943, Page 4

MEDICAL STUDENTS

TRAINING FACILITIES AN INCREASE •UhGED. MEETING OF PROTEST IN WELLINGTON. (By Telegraph—Press Association.) WELLINGTON, This Day. Following discussion, the following resolution was adopted unanimously at a meeting held last night to protest against the exclusion of students from the . Otago Medical School:— “This meeting of citizens interested in the provision of a sufficient number of medical men to meet the needs of the people of the Dominion urges the Government and the University of New Zealand to increase the facilities for training medical students. The meeting also expresses regret that students who have passed the medical intermediate examination are prevented from continuing their studies.” The chairman, Mr W. H. Stevens, stated that the facts were that in order to obtain registration as a medical student, a candidate must spend at least three years so that he might pass the preliminary examination, and at least one year to pass the intermediate examination. These were not competitive examinations; yet it had been stated recently that the Otago University College decided to make the intermediate examination competitive and to admit 100 students. “Now this is where the injustice comes in,” said Mr Stevens. “Certain candidates who have just missed in the November examination are permitted to sit for a special examination in February. The university calendar says that the November examination and the special examination shall be regarded as one. But a communication from Mr Chapman, registrar of Otago University, states that the full accommodation in the second year medical classes has been taken up by students who passed at the ordinary intermediate examination, together with those who failed to graduate to the third year of the course. Thus, students who sat for the special examination have received no consideration at all, and there is no guarantee that they will receive any consideration next year. Unless they are prepared to go through the course again they are locked out of the university for good. But why should this restriction be placed on medical students alone? There are no restrictions on candidates for law, engineering, architecture or accountancy. We all know what a grave shortage of doctors there is at present; yet the University of Otago has decided on a course which will make the position a great deal worse. I have been told that the cause of the restriction is the lack of space for second year students. If that is so, and it is not proposed to , increase the accommodation, then the calendar should make it plain to students what the regulations really are, and not let them go on for four or five years before telling them that they cannot continue with the course.”