ON EDUCATIONAL TRAINING FOR OVERSEAS LIFE. 303 
The vacancies in the Colonial (Government) Service for which candidates are 
usually selected in this country are those for junior officers in the higher grades, posts 
in the lower grades being usually filled by local candidates. Modern conditions require 
a higher standard of personal, educational and professional qualifications than formerly. 
The minimum educational standard is that of the school certificate ; but the appoint- 
ments open to boys of school-leaving age (minimum 19 years) are confined to the 
customs and constabulary in a few Dependencies. For all other posts, the minimum 
age is 214 (23 for public works and railways), and for these a University degree or 
professional qualification is an advantage and in many cases essential. 
For young men who have taken a University degree in one of the biological 
sciences there is a wide field of opportunity in the Colonial Service. In almost all 
the tropical Dependencies, agriculture, including stock rearing, is the principal 
occupation. Some 30 to 40 vacancies occur annually for agricultural officers and 
specialists in agricultural botany, mycology, entomology, or chemistry, in addition 
to 20 to 26 vacancies for veterinary and forestry officers. Many of these vacancies 
are filled by the holders of Colonial agricultural or veterinary scholarships. Ten of 
these scholarships are offered annually ; the former are for a two years’ course of 
post-graduate study, the first year in this country and the second year usually at the 
Imperial College of Tropical Agriculture in Trinidad. A scholarship is worth £250 
a year with additional provision for travelling, books, and training fees abroad. The 
veterinary scholarships are similar in value. Outside the Government service there 
are openings for science graduates in the service of such organisations as the Empire 
Cotton Growing Corporation (which also offers agricultural scholarships), the Rubber 
Research Institute in Malaya, and the Rubber, Cocoa and Tea Schemes in Ceylon. 
The following notes compiled from letters received from various agencies indicate 
the prospects of employment for young men in the Dependencies concerned at the 
present time. 
The West India Committee.—Comparatively speaking, there are few openings for 
_ young Englishmen in the West Indies unless they have ample capital of, say, £3,000 
and upwards to invest in fruit cultivation. Occasional vacancies occur for overseers 
on sugar plantations, salary about £80 a year to start with, all found, but the starting 
age is usually 21. Young men with agricultural posts open to them would do well to 
take a course at the Imperial College of Tropical Agriculture. In the professions 
_ there are not many openings, as many West Indians themselves embark on pro- 
fessional careers. At the {present time there are no vacancies for overseers or in 
industries. 
Malayan Information Agency.—Companies and business firms do not as a rule care 
to accept minors, as they are not in a position to sign binding contracts. In certain 
instances the Government engages probationers at 19 years of age. The Eastern 
banks engage at home, and train prior to leaving. When engagements are made in 
this country (U.K.), passages are paid in every case. In consequence of general trade 
depression and Government financial stringency, opportunities in general business 
are at present practically nil and the filling of vacancies in Government departments 
_ is restricted to absolute necessity. This Agency is always glad to give advice to 
_ any who may wish to proceed to Malaya. 
The British North Borneo (Chartered) Company.—The European population of 
North Borneo, including women and children, is only about 500. Opportunities for 
employment are very limited, and in the present depressed state of trade the tendency 
is to reduce the number of Europeans employed. In normal times vacancies occur at 
infrequent intervals for assistants in the various rubber and tobacco estates; office 
assistants and accountants are also occasionally required by commercial firms. In 
these appointments a secondary school standard of education is generally required. 
The cost of passage from the United Kingdom to Borneo is usually paid. No person 
seeking employment should go to North Borneo unless assured of employment on 
arrival by some firm orcompany ofrepute. Inthe Government service, administrative 
and professional (including banking) appointments exist, but for administrative posts 
(cadets) the minimum age limit is 22, and professional posts are invariably filled by the 
appointment of qualified men with previous experience and over the age of 21. 
Office of the High Commissioner for Southern Rhodesia.—While the present world 
depression lasts, the Government of Southern Rhodesia is not desirous of encouraging 
_ young men to go out to the colony unless they are equipped with means as well as 
special training for the avocation that they desire to follow. 
