Vis Stud Plans to Accept Only Freshmen This Year

Harvard's new Visual Studies Department has reversed itself and decided not to accept student transfers from the existing Architectural Sciences Department.

There may be a few exceptions--a few current sophomores in Arch Sci allowed to change to Vis Stud--but they will be "really important cases", Eduard Sekler, Chairman of the Visual Studies Department, said yesterday.

The new Department, which will begin operation next Fall, plans to announce the acceptance of approximately 20 freshmen early next week, Sekler said in an interview. The exact day has not been determined. Over 50 freshmen applied to the Department, and were interviewed last week.

Earlier this spring when plans for the new Visual Studies Department were before the Committee on Educational Policy and the Faculty for approval, all sophomores in Architectural Sciences had the option of transferring to the new Department. This option no longer exists.

Students remaining in Arch Sci, however, can use new Visual Studies courses toward the old concentration. They will still be required to take the five-course "core" consisting of Arch Sci 20, 21, 30, 31, and 125.

Sekler pointed out that his Department is not planning to establish a junior tutorial until the year after next, so some special provisons would be needed for any current sophomores accepted as exceptions.

"We certainly don't want to be pedantic." Sekler said of exceptions, but he warned that sophomores now in Arch Sci should not get a "false impression" on their chance to transfer.

There will be no sophomore tutorial in Visual Studies for the freshmen accepted next week. Sekler said it was not necessary, "because most of our courses are of a studio nature."