Commerce and the Universities

Abstract

THE question of the suitability of existing arrangements in universities for the training of undergraduates for commercial careers was recently investigated by a sub-committee of the Association of British Chambers of Commerce. This body, having examined the subject in the light of information collected from university appointments bureaux, professional bodies, individual firms and various chambers of commerce, drew up a short “Report on the Commercial Employment of Students with Degrees in Commerce”. The report estimates at less than a hundred the deliberate annual recruitment of young graduates into commerce for the purpose of ultimately using them for the higher executive posts. These recruits are taken mainly by large concerns engaged in either manufacturing or retailing: no evidence was forthcoming of any appreciable recruitment to wholesale houses or shipping concerns. It appears that the recruitment of graduates on the business side is sporadic and exceptional and the firms which employ them make no special arrangements, such as are common on the industrial side, for their special training in business methods. The subcommittee considers that it would be advantageous to British commerce if a larger proportion of graduates were recruited, but that this will not be possible unless steps are taken to incorporate practical office and commercial experience in the university courses.