Student Council Recommends Special Degrees for Seniors Called Away by Draft

Special degrees for students called away from College by the draft in the last half of their Senior year were recommended last night by the Student Council.

If this recommendation is acted on by the University, Seniors called away in the middle of the year will be given a chance to take special general examinations in order that they will not have to return to College after their term in the army if they wish degrees.

In a second recommendation, the Council voted that in case of war it would be in favor of repeating the University practice during the last war of issuing War Degrees to all students who had finished at least three-quarters of their college work before leaving school.

The Council adopted the recommendations after hearing the report of John P. Bunker '42, chairman of the Council Education Committee, in which he outlined the procedure of the University in 1917-18. Bunker reported that University authorities have as yet made no move to create any sort of emergency degrees at all to compensate for the present draft.

Few Able to Return

The discussion in the Council following the report brought out the point that in case of war or long term conscription periods very few men would be able or willing to return to college for any length of time less than a full two years.

On the other hand, if peacetime service is limited to one or even two years, a man will probably be willing to return to take his Senior year and will be able to get back in the habit of studying quickly enough to pass his general examinations in a normal manner.

Therefore the Council decided not to recommend that students called away at the end of their Junior year be given special degrees except in case of emergency.

Bunker's Committee plans to present a complete report on the subject at the next meeting of the Council.