Report of the Senate on the amended draft charter : together with communications from affiliated colleges, from graduates, and from other individuals, relating to the same / University of London.

  • University of London. Senate.
Date:
1857
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Report of the Senate on the amended draft charter : together with communications from affiliated colleges, from graduates, and from other individuals, relating to the same / University of London. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by The Royal College of Surgeons of England. The original may be consulted at The Royal College of Surgeons of England.

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    required intellectual exigencies, is the true way of discharging that great and paramount duty which the University owes to the general cause of liberal education. The Matriculation Examinations taken at the University, from 1838 to 1856 inclusive, afford a mode, however incom- plete, of making a comparative estimate; of the attainments of the students who come, on that occasion, from the affiliated Colleges and of the students who come from other quarters. Both classes are admitted to these Examinations without dis- tinction ; and of those who pass, some of each class voluntarily present themselves to be further examined, for Matriculation with Honours. In the above-stated period of 19 years, 2481 students be- longing to the two classes collectively, passed the Matriculation Examination ; of whom 1571, or 63 per cent., proceeded from affiliated Colleges, and 910, or 37 per cent., from other quar- ters *. In the same period, at the subsequent Matriculation Exami- nations for Honours, 480 cases occurred in which Honours were awarded, in 322 of which the student proceeded from an affiliated College, and in 158, that is, in 4rd of the cases, from other quartersf. This proportion affords reasonable ground for believing that if, on passing the Matriculation Examination, the students of both classes were admitted as Under-graduates of the University, the non-Collegiate students would, at the commencement of the Under-graduate’s career, be not infe- rior in abilities or acquirements to the Collegiate students. These non-Collegiate students, who have matriculated w’ith honours, are by the existing Charters debarred from aftersvards approaching the Degree, unless they choose to quit those teachers under whose tuition they have gathered the first-fruits of University distinction, and then migrate into one of the privi- leged Institutions. Such restriction has the effect of driving away many promising aspirants, likely to do the greatest honour to the Degree. The Senate will only refer to the arguments, contained in the letters of Messrs. Bucknill, Barnes, Todhunter, and Quain, in favour of enlarged admissibility to the Degree. They have been principally anxious to consider the objections urged from the opposite view of the case, and they are glad to have seen these objections urged by highly competent advocates, so as to make sure that nothing material has been omitted. After a full review of the whole discussion, the Senate ad- here, with undiminished confidence, to the 36th Clause as it now stands in the Draft-Charter. They will transmit the Draft- Charter, with that Clause contained in it, to the Secretary of State; and they will at the same time transmit for his perusal * See Table I. (p. 13). t See Table II. (p. 14).
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