EDUCATION FOR THE STATE

Although the omission of any civil service reform in the new Reorganization Bill indicates the tentacles of the spoils system are still strong, the recent tendency to recruit more university students for permanent political jobs is encouraging. New positions are now available to men with a regular four year college training in the Social Sciences or in Public Administration. And, even more important, examinations for entrance into the service are now more closely correlated to the educational system. Such steps as these make it evident that the government now recognizes the need for a greater reservoir of expert opinion.

The most significant aspect of this move to broaden selection from the ranks of university graduates is the change in service examinations from highly specific quizzes to general tests. Thus the government will follow the brilliant example of the English system in requiring of candidates some evidence of broad intellectual attainment instead of technical knowledge. While this method of examination may be an effective bar against the entrance of mediocrities in the service, its use in England proves that it can be undemocratic in excluding the less educated classes. However, the easier accessibility to a college education in this country than in England should help preclude such a possibility.

In fact, the establishment of an expertly trained civil service may be a great aid in the preservation of democracy. For in an age in which governmental control is steadily increasing, the only force that may save America from a centralized dictatorship is the presence of an efficient public service. The decision of the government, therefore, in enlisting education in its behalf could not be more timely.