University Will Grant Five-Year B.S. Degree

A five year Bachelor of Science degree will be offered for the first time next fall, Dean of the Faculty McGeorge Bundy announced yesterday. The science degree, proposed by John H. Van Vleck, Dean of Applied Science, was approved by the faculty at its meeting yesterday afternoon.

Under the newly-adopted plan, the candidate for a B.S. will be awarded his Bachelor of Arts degree after the normal four year period. When he has completed 11 approved courses in Applied Science or related fields with a C or better, he will receive a Bachelor of Science degree.

The faculty passed the proposal with only a brief discussion. The meeting then proceeded to consideration of the Advanced Standing Program.

Present requirements for the Bachelor of Arts degree will not be affected by the passage of the new plan. If student changes fields during his undergraduate career, he may have to spend two additional years working toward his B.S., Van Vleck pointed out.

Candidates for the B.S. degree will be eligible for honors and will be recommended if their marks in the 11 or more approved courses measure up to the honors requirements for the B.A. in Applied Sciences.

More Flexibility

As a result of this program, the University hopes now to be able to compete with other engineering schools, while at the same time insuring a liberal education for all science concentrators. Under former distribution requirements, students concentrating in Applied Science could not take advantage of as many undergraduate courses in engineering as students in other universities.

The B.S. degree will not be granted in any specific branch of engineering, such as civil or electrical engineering, but a student's program will be flexible enough to allow a high degree of specialization in his final year of study.