REASONS FOR COMING TO DARTMOUTH
Professor F. A. Updyke, freshman class officer for the last college year, spent a great deal of time in personal interviews with the men under his charge. The chief purpose in these conferences was to aid the men in getting a right attitude toward their college work, and the results for the year show that his efforts were most successful. The difficulties of the men were analyzed and remedies suggested with the result that the standing of the poorer scholars was raised, and the high scholarship men were brought even higher. At the close of the first semester each man who was subjected to college discipline was met individually, and the action of the College in his case explained, a method of procedure rather unique among American colleges.
Interesting statistics were a by-product of the hundreds of interviews. Of the 381 freshmen who were seen personally,. 75 had fathers who were college graduates, of whom 21 graduated from Dartmouth. Of the whole number of fathers only 83 were professional men. The influence of Dartmouth men, graduates and undergraduates, was the determining factor in bringing the majority of the men to the College. Other reasons, not usually credited, were the location of the College, and its size, midway between the large university and the small college. Athletics influenced only five men to come, if their own confession may be credited. The complete tabulation follows: influ- ence of relatives ,in or out of College, 42; influence of Dartmouth graduates and undergraduates, 141; location of College, 46; size of the College, 12; plan of admission, 18; reputation and spirit of the College, 11; lower expense of education in Dartmouth, 10; athletics, 5; Tuck School, 10; Thayer School, 13.'
The life plans of the men were ascertained as follows: undecided, 69; business, 112; Tuck School, 66; law, 36; engineering, 33 ; chemistry, 10; medicine and teaching, 9 each; literary work, 5; scientific agriculture, 4; architect, consular service, religious work and forestry, 3 each; librarian, 1.
