Senior tutors in three Houses said last night that they will advise students to take the Selective Service qualifying aptitude test which will be administered nationally on May 14, May 21, and June 3.
Rev. Robert W. Haney '56, Allston Burr Senior Tutor in Adams House, said that he will urge students to take the test on the assumption that almost every Harvard sudent will do well on it.
The test should relieve the anxiety of many students, even those near the bottom of their class, since it may prevent them from being drafted. R. Carey McIntosh '55, Allston Burr Senior Tutor in Dunster House said. "A test of this sort favors Harvard men," he added.
Paul D. Sheats '54, Allston Burr Senior Tutor in Eliot House said that he also plans to advise students to take the exam.
Dean Monro said yesterday that although a national system of tests is not ideal, it will be preferable to the chaotle situation that prevailed this Fall, when local boards were given no guidelines and each board established its own criteria for classifying students.
He said that the College would not actively encourage students to take the test, but he noted that Harvard students did "very well" on the qualifying tests administered during the Korean War.
Students will have until April 23 to register for the three-hour test which will cover reading comprehension. Verbal relations, arithmetic reasoning, and data interpretation.
The test will be given at approximately 1200 sites throughout the country, but it is not known whether Harvard will be one of these testing sites.
The Selective Service has not yet determined what scores on the test, which can be taken only once, will be considered satisfactory. During the Korean War, a score of 70 or better for regular students and 30 or better for graduate students was regarded as a basis for deferment.
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