H—34a

It is interesting to compare percentages of M.Sc. graduates for the year 1947 in each of the above subjects with —(a) percentages of the present scientific labour force with qualifications in each of these subjects, and (b) the percentages in the anticipated 1952 scientific labour force.

The figures for the scientific labour force in the respective subjects in 1947 and 1952 are extracted from Appendix I. Some allowance, however, should be made for the considerable number of cases where the subject has not been stated. This applies particularly in the anticipated labour force for 1952. SUMMARY OF PRESENT POSITION IN UNIVERSITY TRAINING OF SCIENTISTS From all this assembled information the following conclusions emerge : A. Science — (1) The number of students in the science faculty in 1947 (1,750) was more than four and a half times the number in 1927. (2) The percentage of students taking science to students taking other definite courses has increased from 8-7 per cent, in 1927 to 15-5 per cent, in 1947. (3) The number of bachelor graduates in 1947 (221) was four times the number in 1927. B. Agriculture—(l) The number of students taking degree courses in agriculture in 1947 (116) was more than four times the number in 1927. (2) The number of bachelor graduates in agriculture in 1947 (10) was five times the number in 1927. C. Home Science — (1) The number of students in the home-science faculty in 1947 (170) was nearly one and a half times the number in 1927. (2) The number of bachelor graduates in home science in 1947 (19) was nearly three times the number in 1927. THE FUTURE SUPPLY OF SCIENCE GRADUATES From the information available as to the numbers of students taking science courses and the numbers who graduate we have attempted to estimate the numbers of graduates for the next five-years, 1948 to 1952 inclusive. As a basis for this estimate we have taken out the percentage of bachelor graduates to the number of students two years earlier, since a student beginning in, say, 1946

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Subject. M.Sc. Graduates, 1947. Labour Force, 1947. Vacancies, 1947. Anticipated Labour Force, 1952. Mathematics 12 18 20 17 Geology 7 4 4 4 Chemistry 43 41 32 40 Physics 16 20 21 21 Botany 9 9 14 11 Zoology 13 8 9 7 All above subjects 100 100 100 100