FIRST THINGS FIRST

Refreshing in its straightforwardness and lack of belligerency, Mr. Martin's article on careers after college, which appears elsewhere in today's CRIMSON, should prove distinctly startling to the average undergraduate. Accustomed as he is to a secure position in the university community, the idea of such intense personal competition in the business world is a striking contrast to the leisurely life of the student today.

The article again lays stress on intelligent preparation by the student during his college career for the field in which he is interested. To a large group there is a novel aspect in the notion that a high scholastic standing is more representative of the prospective job-holder's ability, so far as corporation executives are concerned, than a list of reference numbers after his name in the Harvard Register.

One of the most serious charges brought against the American university system is its failure to instill in the mind of the student the importance of the part that his four years in college plays in acquiring the proper perspective toward his work in after-life. While a strict commercial training is as little to be desired as the exclusive program of "making contracts," the pendulum should swing more to a middle ground.

The problem of the individual fitting himself to the job, has already been the basis of much discussion at Harvard, as the newly created position of Consultant on Careers testifies. Mr. Martin's thought-provoking comment is an excellent compendium on the whole question.