446 
The  Regulation  of  Degrees. 
/Am.  Jour.  Pharm. 
\     October,  1913. 
the  conditions  under  which  such  degrees  should  be  given  in  order 
to  receive  recognition.  As  this  is  a  question  of  national  im- 
portance it  certainly  .should  be  settled  by  the  Conference.  It  is 
unfortunate  that  any  single  state  should  have  undertaken  to  settle 
this  question.  We  certainly  realize  that  New  York  State  has  a 
perfect  right  to  make  its  own  laws  and  state  what  qualifications 
they  will  require  for  registration,  but  there  is  a  question  as  to 
their  right  to  name  the  degree  that  shall  be  given  by  all  colleges 
for  a  certain  amount  of  work.  The  object  of  any  state  pharma- 
ceutical law  should  be  the  protection  of  the  people.  It  is  not  the 
degree  but  the  work  that  counts  for  the  public  protection.  It 
seems  unreasonable  to  refuse  a  candidate  for  registration  an 
examination  because  he  has  a  certain  degree  when  he  would  be 
admitted  with  the  same  qualifications  if  he  had  another  degree.  Do 
not  for  a  moment  think  that  I  am  opposed  to  the  regulation  of 
degrees,  but  I  do  maintain  that  they  should  be  regulated  by  the 
Conference  and  that  it  would  have  been  far  better  if  New  York 
State,  instead  of  adopting  a  fixed  standard,  had  made  their  recom- 
mendations to  the  Conference.  It  must  be  remembered  that  New 
York  has  only  one  class  of  colleges,  while  there  is  an  entirely 
different  class  in  other  states  which  is  entitled  to  consideration. 
In  considering  degrees  and  their  requirements  one  thing  should 
be  kept  in  mind,  and  that  is  how  such  action  will  affect  our  stand- 
ing in  the  educational  world.  The  degree  of  Graduate  in  Phar- 
macy and  that  of  Pharmaceutical  Chemist  are  purely  pharmaceu- 
tical degrees  and  in  no  way  related  to  other  educational  degrees. 
Not  so  with  that  of  Bachelor  of  Science,  which  has  a  recognized 
standard,  being  given  for  four  full  academic  years.  Just  as  soon 
as  we  give  this  degree  for  anything  less  than  that,  we  shall  cut 
our  own  throats.  We  cannot  afford  to  do  anything  that  will  lower 
our  standing  among  educational  institutions.  The  degree  of 
Bachelor  of  Science  has  been  given  by  a  few  university  schools 
of  pharmacy,  who  have  maintained  its  previous  high  standing,  and 
I  believe  that  they  have  the  right  to  insist  that  the  Conference 
should  not  recognize  any  institution  that  gives  this  degree  for  any 
less  than  the  customary  amount  of  work.  If  independent  colleges 
or  those  affiliated  with  universities  are  not  so  situated  that  they 
can  meet  these  requirements  let  them  refrain  from  giving  the  de- 
gree until  such  time  as  they  can  conscientiously  meet  them.  I 
fully  believe  that  any  institution  which  grants  the  Bachelor  of 
Science  degree  for  four  years  of  three  days  a  week  will  not  only 
