88 
A Study of Student Loans and 
There is needed, then, a more careful appraisal of the individual; 
not once but frequently. Better gauging of the individual is as important 
to society both in its social and economic aspects as it is that the future 
of business enterprise or business conditions be gauged. This is necessary 
to social progress and there could be no better place than the university 
to start this selective process. Some work is already being done along 
these lines in the way of mental tests for admission to Colleges and of 
grouping for instructional purposes. Since scholarships and fellowships 
are awarded to a few who are supposed to be at the top of the 
scale in the university community, it is most imperative that the selection of 
these be made with certain fundamental principles in mind. In the past 
students have received these awards principally on the basis of scholastic 
ability, with the exception that some scholarships and fellowships were 
granted to those individuals who were in need. There have been many 
variations between these two extremes, which makes it difficult to deter- 
mine the principles which should prevail. 
That which is of the greatest importance in this consideration of 
scholarships and fellowships is what part they should play in Student aid; 
what relation they should bear to self-help; what ratio should exist 
between them and loans. It is neither possible nor prudent to go into 
detail here in regard to the administration of such aid to students, but 
there are certain guiding principles which would go far toward setting 
matters aright. 
The first Step is to draw a sharp line between scholarships and fellow 
ships. They do not and they should not mean the same thing. The fellow 
ship should be held by a Student with a high order of scholastic ability. 
He should be able to push forward into the field of knowledge in an inde 
pendent fashion. If he is incapable of this, there is no reason why he 
should be supported while acquiring knowledge to be commercialized 
later. In a case like this a loan should be made. Appointment as a 
fellow does not necessarily mean that financial assistance should be given. 
A fellowship should be formal recognition of intellectual accomplishment. 
Therefore, universities could establish, for instance, an Adam Smith 
Fellowship in Economics or a Barnard Fellowship in Medical Research, 
not necessarily carrying any compensation, but denoting an honor which 
should be sought by those who are scholastically ambitious. The first 
considerations are the scholasic attainment and promise of greater future 
development. These are to be considered regardless of financial need. 
After the selection has been made on this basis, the financial element should 
enter in and financial assistance given to those who need it. If the Student 
is to commercialize his training, he should be given a loan; if not a peri- 
odical allowance.