Appletons' Popular Science Monthly, November 1899: Volume LVI, No. 1Various
Science
Appletons' Popular Science Monthly, November 1899: Volume LVI, No. 1
Various
Science -- Periodicals; Technology -- Periodicals
The university's exchequer is supplied partly by its endowment, but
chiefly by an assessment on the college incomes, a capitation tax on
all undergraduates, and the fees attending matriculation, examinations,
and the granting of degrees. The examinations are numerous. Every
student on entering is required to pass, or to claim exemption from,
an entrance examination. In either case he pays £3 to the university,
and upon admission to any honor course or "tripos" to qualify for
the degree of Bachelor of Arts £3 more is exacted. The income of the
university from these examination fees alone amounts to £9,400 per
annum, £4,600 of which goes to pay the examiners. In America this is
supposed to be a part of the professor's or instructor's duty, no
additional remuneration is allowed, and hence it does not become
necessary to make an additional tax upon the students' resources. The
conferring of degrees is also made a very profitable affair. Each
candidate for the degree of B. A. pays out £7 to the voracious 'varsity
chest, and upon proceeding to the M. A. a further contribution of £12
is requested. In this way the university makes about £12,000 a year,
and, as though this was not sufficient, she requires a matriculation
fee of £5 for every student who becomes a member. By this means another
annual £5,000 is obtained. It must be remembered that these fees are
entirely separate from the college fees. When the £5 matriculation for
the latter is taken into consideration and the £8 a term (at Trinity)
for lectures, two thirds of which the student does not attend, when it
is understood that all this and more does not include living expenses,
which are by no means slight, and that there are three terms instead of
two, as with us, it will be obvious that Cambridge adheres very closely
to the rule that to them only who have wealth shall her refining
influence be given. That the greatest universities in existence should
render it almost totally impossible for aught but the rich to obtain
the advantages of their unusual educational facilities jars with that
idea of democracy of learning which an American training is apt to
foster. But, as we shall point out later, an aristocracy of learning
may also have its uses.
[Illustration: HENRY SIDGWICK, Litt. D., Trinity. Knightbridge
Professor of Moral Philosophy.]
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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