INTERNATIONAL SCHOLARSHIPS

Former Senate Foreign Relations Chairman J. William Fulbright, whose name is part of a 40-year-old international education exchange, says President Reagan could have benefitted from the program.

"If he'd had a Fulbright, he never would have gotten in this mess." said Fulbright, referring to the crisis currently surrounding White House foreign policy-makers.

Fulbright, 81, a Democratic senator from Arkansas from 1945 until his defeat in 1974, commented Tuesday at the National Press Club after speeking about the 40th anniversary of the start of the Fulbright Exchange Program.

The exchange of students and teachers between the United States and other nations, which he said promotes understanding in foreign policy, was begun by legislation he introduced as a freshman in 1945. Prolonging College as Long as Possible

SHEEPSKINS

Less than half the students in a federal study got their college degree in the traditional four years after high school graduation, the Department of Education says.

Nearly 25 percent took six, seven or more years to get a sheepskin, according to a report this week from the department's Center for Statistics.

The study was based on an analysis of college transcripts of 4400 students who were part of a larger group interviewed in the high school class of 1972.

The researchers found that 49 percent earned their bachelor's degrees by 1976 in the traditional four years. Twenty-seven percent took only one year longer.

But nine percent of the students took six years, 5 percent needed seven years, and 10 percent spent up to 11 years before completing their pursuit of a college diploma.

Women were more likely than men to finish college in the traditional four years, 56 percent to 43 percent.

Among those who took longer than four years, 70 percent entered college in the fall after high school graduation. Most of the rest started college within three years. NCAA Penalizes Athletes

DRUG TESTING

The National Collegiate Athletic Association took its first action against college athletes who failed drug tests conducted during preliminary rounds of championship tournaments in Division I and III schools, the Chronicle of Higher Education reported this week.