Page:The despatch of 1854, on General education in India.djvu/15

Rh stitutions in immediate connection with the, the at Caermarthen, the  at Oscott, the  at Sheffield, the  at Bristol, and the Countess of Huntingdon's College at Cheshunt, are among the institutions from which the London University is empowered to receive certificates for degrees, so in India, institutions conducted by all denominations of Christians, Hindoos, Mahomedans, Parsees, Sikhs, Bhuddists, Jains, or any other religious persuasions, may be affiliated to the universities, if they are found to afford the requisite course of study, and can be depended upon for the certificates of conduct which will be required.

29. The detailed regulations for the examinations for degrees should be framed with a due regard for all classes of the affiliated institutions ; and we will only observe upon this subject, that the standard for common degrees will require to be fixed with very great judgment. There are many persons who well deserve the distinction of an academical degree, as the recognition of a liberal education, who could not hope to obtain it, if the examination was as difficult as that for the senior Government scholarships; and the standard required should be such as to command respect, without discouraging the efforts of deserving students, which would be a great obstacle to the success of the universities. In the competitions for honours, which, as in the London University, will follow the examinations for degrees, care should be taken to maintain such a standard as will afford a guarantee for high ability and valuable attainments; the subjects for examination being so selected as to include the best portions of the different schemes of study pursued at the affiliated institutions.

30. It will be advisable to institute, in connection with the universities, professorships for the purpose of the delivery of lectures in various branches of learning, for the acquisition of which, at any rate, in an advanced degree, facilities do not now exist in other institutions in India. Law is the most important of these subjects; and it will be for you to consider whether, as was proposed in the plan of the Council of Education to which we have before re-