Page:Popular Science Monthly Volume 62.djvu/436

430 that of the civilization of which it forms a part, are coincident; that, in terms of the ultimate test, the college ideal is a good one.

The present study is an attempt to follow the subsequent careers of high-grade college men in order to determine their evaluation by the world at large. It presupposes two criteria, each of which must be arbitrarily chosen, one for high grade or success in college, and the other for achievement of the same character in after life. As the former criterion, I have taken membership in Phi Beta Kappa, the honorary, college Greek letter fraternity; as the latter, mention in '"Who's Who in America' the annual biographical cyclopedia published in Chicago.

There can be, I believe, little question as to the validity of the first criterion. Election to Phi Beta Kappa is based upon marks given in course, only the high-grade men (and women) being admitted, and so far as I know, no complaint has ever been made as to the justice of election on this basis. There are at present fifty chapters of the fraternity in the colleges and universities of our country. Only students matriculated for the bachelor's degree are elected and of the entire membership 85 per cent, or more have received it in arts; the remainder in science or philosophy. This eliminates from our study the professional, technical and graduate schools and reduces it practically to the academic institutions of higher grade: in fact, the typical American college whose raison d'être has been more boldly questioned than has almost any other part of our educational machinery. The percentage of graduates elected to Phi Beta Kappa by the different chapters varies, being as low as 8 per cent, for Harvard and as high as 33 per cent, for several other colleges, with an average of about 16 per cent., or one graduate in six, for the whole. It is, then, this upper stratum of college men which we are considering in this study.

The criterion of success in after life which I have made use of is perhaps not so free from valid criticism. It is possible that not all would wish to accept mention in 'Who's Who' as indicative of high grade in life, yet with all its shortcomings, I know of no better criterion of success that can be applied to large numbers of living Americans. Although the names of many men and women of eminence fail to find place on its pages, it is nevertheless probably true that each who is there mentioned has achieved more than an ordinary degree of success in the chosen calling and is, therefore, entitled to be classed as high grade.

The volume chosen for the purpose of the present study was that for 1900, since it was contemporary with the 'Handbook and General Address Catalog of Phi Beta Kappa,' compiled by the Secretary, Reverend E. B. Parsons, of Williamstown, Mass., which is used in connection with it. The volume referred to contains the names of 8,602 living Americans, from every calling and profession. Of this number 3,237 are college graduates, with degrees from more than 200 institutions.