NEW YORK TIMES CURRENT EVENTS CONTEST ALTERED

Among the new plans recently announced by the Academic Council in charge of the annual Current Events Contest are proposals to change the type of essay required, to lengthen the period of time covered by the facts contest, to change the date of the test so as not to interfere with Mid-year or hour examinations, and to bar winners of local contests from competing again until a year has elapsed after their winning.

In the contest held this year, H.G. Abdian '30 won the local prize of the University while Harvard received fourth place in the national contest.

Style of Comments to be Changed

At its recent meeting in the annex of the Times Building in New York, the Academic Council, composed of representatives from all 20 college entered in the contest, instructed its Executive Committee to make several important changes in the conduct of future competitions. Until the present time, the essays submitted have been in the nature of editorial comments. The proposed plan is to make the essays more informative end interpretive than previously.

It is also intended that the contest be held a sufficiently long time after Mid-years and far enough before April Hours so that it will not conflict in any way with either examination period. The probable date will be either in the last week in February or the first week in March.

Time Covered by Contest Lengthened

It was further decided to lengthen the period of time covered by the facts contest from eight months to ten months. The general character of the competition will remain unchanged. The three hour examinations will not be divided but it is intended to allow contestants to spend the time to their best advantage instead of requiring a certain number of minutes to be spent on each question.

Another important change prevents local winners from competing again until at least a year has elapsed since their first success. This means that only men who win a contest in their Freshman or Sophomore years will have a chance to win the prize a second time.