The obligations of university students for war-time service are twofold. There is the liability under the National Service Emergency Regulations. 1940, of male students for service in the Armed Forces, and there is also the liability under the Industrial Manpower Emergency Regulations, 1944, of all persons, male or female, and irrespective of age for direction to work of national importance.

General Policy

It may be well first to refer to the general policy of the National Service Department in regard to postponement of service in the Armed Forces of students. War Cabinet has directed that in respect of male University students pursuing a full-time course of study in medicine, dentistry, science, engineering, architecture or agriculture who by reason of age and medical grading have a present liability for mobilisation in the Armed Forces, postponement of such service may be granted on appeal (made if necessary by the Director of National Service). No such postponement shall be continued unless the student pursues his studies diligently and effectively, nor shall any such postponement be granted or continued unless the Director of National Service is satisfied that it is in the National interest to maintain the minimum number of students in any particular course estimated to be necessary to meet the urgent requirements of the Armed Forces and of essential industry.

Law and Commerce students will not be permitted to take courses as full-time students except in cases of most exceptional merit.

Postponements of service granted to students approved by the Director of National Service, are subject to periodical review and there is no undertaking that postponements will be renewed year by year even though a student's academic performance may have been entirely satisfactory. Owing to changed circumstances it may not be possible in the public interest to continue postponements already granted. In these circumstances students would be well advised to make the best progress possible in each year so that if studies are necessarily interrupted by service in the Forces students will have covered at least a material portion of their studies.

Only in exceptional coses and unless there is good reason therefor can students who have completed their degree course be approved to pursue studies for some other degree. Further approval for proceeding to a Master's degree will be favourably viewed only in respect of students who have shown very special merit.

In view of the critical manpower situation during the 1943-1944 summer vacation and of the urgent need for labour in various industries, particularly during March which was the most critical month for seasonal activities, it became necessary to utilise the services of students through various industrial avenues and further to request the University of New Zealand to postpone the opening date of the first term for one month. As a result over 4,000 students were brought under direction, and I should like to express to those concerned my deep appreciation of their splendid service and co-operation. The nature of the work undertaken covered seasonal requirements of high priority including farming, orchards, vegetable growing, freezing works, dairy factories, engineering, wool store, medical, scientific, hospital, domestic, commerce. Government and other work of national importance. The table attached briefly summarises the allocation of student labour. The figures include some members of the teaching profession.

Early Start Next Year

As yet it is rather early for me to be able to indicate the extent to which students will have to be called upon during the approaching summer, but the indications are that it will be possible to avoid making any request for an extension of the University vacation. I would say quite definitely, however, that there will be a need for assistance from students in various avenues of work of national importance and that, apart from an extension of holidays for the purpose, much the same measures can be expected to apply this summer as applied last summer.

I would make a particular request to students first of all to give the Manpower Officers the maximum of co-operation and to bear in mind the difficulties which those officers themselves are confronted with; and secondly, if they have any cause for complaint, to make It known fully and specifically to the Manpower Officer without delay. You may rest assured that Manpower officers will do their utmost to avoid valid causes of complaint or, where such unavoidably arise, to remove them quickly.

The tpes of work to which students will be directed are likely to be much the same as last summer, preference being given to open-air work to the greatest extent that the urgency of national needs will permit. Students can also expect a reasonable break between finishing their examinations and commencing holiday work and a further short break between finishing that work and resuming classes. Students are called up for this vacation work however only because of the urgency of the national need. It is a call to National Service ad a duty in the same sense as any other national service. I stress this point because, while we shall do as much as possible to meet the circumstances of students and to safeguard their reasonable welfare. I would not like any student to be under the false impression that the obligation required of him is one that can be molifled to his or her convenience without regard to the national interest, or that his or her duty is in any sense a lesser duty than similar ones necessarily imposed on other citizens. But over all, and particularly in the light of your fine response last summer, I do not anticipate that any such attitude will be found, and I certainly feel assured that whatever call it may be necessary to make for students' help will be answered fully and willingly.