The Rise of the Research University

A Sourcebook

Louis Menand, Paul Reitter, Chad Wellmon, Louis Menand, Paul Reitter, Chad Wellmon

• Publisher: University of Chicago Press
• Year: 2017
• Print ISBN: 9780226414713, 9780226414683
• eBook ISBN: 9780226414850
• Topic: Education
• Subtopic: Education General

The modern research university is a global institution with a rich history that stretches into an ivy-laden past, but for as much as we think we know about that past, most of the writings that have recorded it are scattered across many archives and, in many cases, have yet to be translated into English. With this book, Paul Reitter, Chad Wellmon, and Louis Menand bring a wealth of these important texts together, assembling a fascinating collection of primary sources—many translated into English for the first time—that outline what would become the university as we know it.
           
The editors focus on the development of American universities such as Cornell, Johns Hopkins, Harvard, and the Universities of Chicago, California, and Michigan. Looking to Germany, they translate a number of seminal sources that formulate the shape and purpose of the university and place them next to hard-to-find English-language texts that took the German university as their inspiration, one that they creatively adapted, often against stiff resistance. Enriching these texts with short but insightful essays that contextualize their importance, the editors offer an accessible portrait of the early research university, one that provides invaluable insights not only into the historical development of higher learning but also its role in modern society.
 

* Part 1 *

German Research Universities

Chapter 1

Report to King Friedrich Wilhelm II of Germany*

Friedrich Gedike

Introduction to Gedike’s Report

In 1789 a Prussian minister named Friedrich Gedike submitted his report on German universities to King Friedrich Wilhelm II. The fifty-nine folio pages were the product of an academic scouting trip that Gedike had undertaken earlier that year to assess, as he put it, “the condition of foreign [i.e., non-Prussian] universities” and to gather gossip on Prussia’s own universities. Gedike, a member of the council responsible, among other things, for making all academic appointments, visited fourteen universities, where he interviewed faculty members and students and generally tried to unearth why some universities enjoyed fame and prestige, whereas others suffered ignominy and disregard. He paid close attention to faculty members and was especially interested in how they had been hired and how much they were paid. Gedike was identifying prospective professors whom Prussian universities might poach. Between his interviews and informal discussions with faculty members and students, he visited university libraries and buildings, and wrote detailed reports on those as well. Gedike’s university travelogue, replete with academic anecdotes and statistics, was a reconnaissance report on the state of German universities, written with a singular purpose—to help Prussia increase the prestige and quality of its own universities.

But one university stood out—the University of Göttingen. Established in 1734 by George II, king of England and elector of Hanover, and funded primarily by noble-dominated estates in the region, the university may well have been the first modern research university. It introduced a series of mostly unprecedented reforms: state oversight of faculty appointments, higher salaries and teaching fees for professors, the expansion of the philosophy faculty, and a stringent commitment to nonsectarianism. As a matter of university policy and in hopes of avoiding theological divisions, Göttingen’s state overseers tried to avoid hiring doctrinaire and contentious faculty members, especially when it came to theology professors. It also built the first research library, assembling it in close consultation with its faculty members.

Göttingen had been designed and run as a financial and personnel resource for the state. One Göttingen graduate compared his alma mater to a royal factory: “You, Mr. Curator, are the factory director; the teachers at the university are workers; the young people studying and their parents . . . are the customers; the sciences taught are the wares. Your King is the master and owner of his [scholarly] factory.” The university and its resources—faculty, students, scholarship—were goods to be managed and exploited by the state.

As Gedike’s report makes clear, however, the university’s most valuable resource was its fame and reputation. It was also its most fragile resource. Göttingen’s ability to attract wealthy foreign students and their fees, not to mention the money they spent on alcohol, depended primarily on the renown of its faculty members. And, unlike the academic currency of the contemporary academy, a professor’s reputation was not based primarily on what or how much he published, but rather on the regard in which his local colleagues and students held him. A professor’s ability to keep an audience of students engaged was more important than his ability to write.

From the Report: Göttingen

This university, sustained by royal munificence from its founding, is more well-known and better regarded than any other university in Germany. Its organization and condition have been thoroughly described in several books, especially in Pütter’s academic history of Göttingen.1

Nowhere else have I found as much fondness for their university on the part of professors as here. They seem to take it as a foregone conclusion that their university is the best in Germany. They often speak of other universities with disdain or pity. It’s as if they are all intoxicated with pride in the university’s merits—partly real, partly alleged, and partly imagined. Several professors confidently assured me that even the most famous scholars, were they to leave Göttingen for another university, would lose a considerable amount not only of their celebrity but also of their usefulness (as, for example, happened to Selchow2 and Baldinger,3 former Göttingen professors who are now on the faculty at Marburg). If, on the other hand, an unknown scholar were to become a professor at Göttingen, he would secure a great reputation and value, simply upon his appointment. The professors here assured me that from the glory that for them always surrounds the university, a few rays are always cast upon every individual.

It is hard to keep from smiling when hearing some of these Göttingen scholars speak in such enthusiastic tones, as though no erudition, no light, were to be found outside the charmed circle of Göttingen’s walls. That said, in Göttingen itself this university pride has some very positive effects. It creates a certain esprit de corps that I have found nowhere else in this form and to this extent. Every professor not only thinks of the university’s reputation as his own but conversely sees his own and his colleagues’ honors as rightly the university’s as well. For this reason, one hardly finds here the kind of factionalization, envy, backbiting, and need to diminish one another’s accomplishments that so often cause bitterness and rancor among the members of the faculty at other universities. Or at least, they are less apparent here. Professors discuss their colleagues’ shortcomings here far more mercifully than is normally the case at other universities; they are inclined to praise or excuse whatever conceivably can be praised or excused. Professional jealously is not absent here either, but it is expressed in a way that is not as raw, base, or contemptuous as at other universities.

As a result, however, it is more difficult here than elsewhere to elicit from the professors reliable accounts of all those things one would wish to know about. They are all extremely eloquent about the advantages of their university, but in equal measure silent and secretive about its deficiencies. It seems to me that it would indeed be desirable for this esprit de corps animating the Göttingen professors and making the honor of the university the focus of all their desires and endeavors to be the rule in our Prussian universities as well. That said, this very esprit de corps also prompted me to prefer to gather information about some situations and circumstances from knowledgeable, sensible students, rather than from professors, because I was afraid that the latter’s anxious care for the university’s reputation would lead them to provide me with partial accounts.

[ . . . ]

Among the various incentives that the Hanover government can grant professors, one that particularly stands out is a distinction of a civic character [Civil-Character]. In the theology department, one or more professors regularly receive the title of consistorial councilor [Konsistorialraths]. In the other three faculties, the title of court counselor is very common (there are five from the law faculty, five from medicine, and ten from philosophy with this title). Furthermore, three professors (Böhmer, Pütter, and Michaelis)4 have the title of privy justice councilor [Geheimen Justizrathes]. The professors seem to attach great importance to this incentive, which is quite common at most other universities and very unusual only at Saxon universities. A professor’s seniority typically plays an important role in the decision to grant such a title, but oftentimes, as is presently the case here, older professors are passed over for a younger one. These titles have no influence on academic rank, but this much is certain: the Hanover government often avoids having to pay salary increases through this far less expensive incentive.

It is hard to obtain reliable information about professors’ salaries in Göttingen. Almost all the professors are very secretive about it, and for the most part each one knows only his own salary, not his colleagues’. In particular, the raises that one or the other professor receives over time remain for the most part unknown. This is because the university’s finances are handled not in Göttingen but in Hanover. This secrecy has its positive consequences: it prevents storms of jealousy as well as feelings of superiority.

[ . . . ]

A hardworking and popular professor can earn a great deal from his courses. Compared to other universities, there are disproportionately fewer courses given for free. The honoraria are higher here than at most other universities. No course costs less than 5 thalers; many cost 10 or more. Beyond these public courses there are the private courses [collegia privatissima], so called even though forty or fifty students attend them and pay 3 to 4 louis each. Some professors earn 4,000 to 5,000 thaler a year or more, although here as elsewhere there are professors who live in poverty due to their unpopularity.

[ . . . ]

It has always been a fundamental principle in Göttingen that the philosophy faculty, more than the others, requires particularly excellent and famous professors. And indeed, since the university’s founding, the philosophy faculty has always particularly distinguished itself through the merits and fame of its members. That continues to be the case.

The most senior member of the philosophy faculty is currently Privy Justice Councilor Michaelis, professor of Oriental languages. Age has dulled his mind considerably; in particular, his memory is noticeably weak. It was therefore recently deemed necessary to hire another excellent Orientalist alongside Michaelis while Michaelis was still alive, so that the famous and successful Oriental literature program at Göttingen would not be allowed to decline. Privy Councilor Eichhorn5 was selected and hired. Since then, old Michaelis’s popularity has diminished still further; it is fair to say that he has more or less been retired. [ . . . ]

Privy Councilor Heyne6 is well known as one of the most preeminent and important lynchpins of the university’s renown. He has thus to this day enjoyed more of the Hanover government’s confidence than any other professor. He has been consulted for advice before anyone else, and his recommendations are always carefully considered, especially concerning vacancies, etc. He has up to now been effectively the chancellor of the university, without the actual title, for since Mosheim’s7 death Göttingen has not had an actual chancellor. Heyne’s tireless work to bring honor to the university is recognized by all. Thanks to him, humanistic studies have risen to extraordinary heights at Gottingen. Not a single other university has pursued these studies with the same assiduousness. No other university has trained so many erudite and elegant philologists in recent times. Even the wealthiest and most prominent students attend his courses. [ . . . ] The three higher faculties unanimously recognize the great influence that Heyne’s lectures have in making his students’ education more rigorous and scholarly. The utility of his courses for theologians is particularly noticeable. And all the while, this excellent man’s lectures are nothing less than magnificent and magnetic. They are indeed fruitful enough, rich in both new ideas and the application of old ideas, to make up for any dryness and unpleasantness they might have had.

[ . . . ]

Two course catalogues are printed twice a year in Göttingen:

1. A Latin one, in which lectures are listed in order of the professors’ seniority. This catalogue includes only the professors, not the other lecturers [Privat-docenten].

2. A German one, systematically organized according to particular sciences. This catalogue lists all the lecturers as well as the professors. However, this is done mostly for appearance’s sake, because lecturers seldom attract an appreciable number of students to a course of their own. Most lecturers spend their time giving private instruction, and in the so-called private courses.

Göttingen has more public institutes than any other university, both those associated with the university in general as well as those under various individual faculties. Let me here describe them briefly.

General Institutions

1. Standing above all others is the library. Perhaps no other public library has ever achieved as much as Göttingen’s. The entire university owes a great deal of its fame to it. And if Göttingen has produced a greater number of actual scholars than any other university in recent times, this is less an achievement of its professors than a result of this excellent library and the unparalleled ease with which one can use it. Many professors owe their fame as authors entirely to the library, which provided them with whatever they could wish for to assist their academic work. Many young scholars have educated themselves here simply by using the library. The example of Göttingen seems to truly prove that nothing is more conducive to a university’s public recognition, flourishing, and fame than a great library arranged according to a well-considered plan. The Hanoverian government has spent large sums of money on this institution. Even now they continue to spend around 3,000 thalers a year on the library, often more. For there is no fixed sum of money permanently allocated to the library; instead, the government budgets money according to its current circumstances and constraints, sometimes more, sometimes less.

The library is currently estimated to contain around thirty thousand volumes. The decision about which books to acquire is not left to the discretion of the librarian, as is the case at most other universities; instead, every professor writes down the books in his particular subject he would like the library to acquire, and then the head librarian, Privy Councilor Heyne, acquires them. One benefit of this process is that, unlike the case at many other universities, no single field is given preferential treatment while others are neglected. All have their collections expanded and completed according to the same criteria. In addition, nowhere is the library made as easy for teachers and students to use as here. Instead of being open only twice a week, as is normal at other universities, the library here is open daily. There are at least some librarians present all day, to help locate requested books, etc. The library maintains a file for every professor and lecturer, to keep the slips of paper with which he has requested books for himself or, by signing his name, for his students. All of these details concerning the organization of the library are managed with great precision. [ . . . ]

2. The museum was established sixteen years ago. It originated with the purchase of Professor Büttner’s8 natural history collection and has since been expanded both by sizable bequests and through further purchases. It contains many rare and exquisite pieces from all the realms of nature and is, especially given its short history, already well regarded.

3. The Society of Sciences. Not all professors are members, since the society limits membership to the fields of physics, mathematics, and history. The society is meant to meet once a month. Its funds come from the income from scholarly periodicals published under its direction. Anyone who lectures is paid an honorarium of 20 thalers.

[ . . . ]

Institutions in Particular Faculties

In the philosophy faculty:

a. The philology seminar, which, under the supervision of Privy Councilor Heyne, is an extremely useful institution. Many capable humanists, now famous in their positions as university or secondary school teachers both within and outside Hanover, emerged from this seminar. So too have a number of students intending primarily to study theology or law been excellently prepared here. The actual seminar lessons are very practical. Seminar students are taught both oral interpretation and to write Latin essays from across whole field of humanistic studies, which are then evaluated by the director or defended in an oral examination.

[ . . . ]

I had the opportunity to attend a dissertation defense in the medical faculty. The public disputation here is treated as an empty formality, unlike in Saxon universities, where it is considered an actual test of the graduating student’s ability. Here, respondent and opponent prepare for this scholarly shadowboxing match together, with arguments and answers regularly set down on paper beforehand. The opponents extraordinarii, typical at many other universities, who normally ask the first question and give the respondent his first opportunity to prove his skill, have here been entirely done away with. The respondent here need never fear being stumped.

[ . . . ]

When it comes to filling vacant positions, Göttingen does not always proceed according to uniform principles. Oftentimes, candidates are recruited from other universities. Tübingen in particular seems to have served as a feeder for Göttingen for quite some time. It is also not uncommon to judge a professor by more than merely his literary reputation and his books: someone is sent to travel to his home university to listen to him lecture and provide a report.

[ . . . ]

There were 819 students enrolled in the summer semester, including:

1. 235 theology students

2. 392 law students

3. 108 medical students

4. 84 studying simply philosophy, mathematics, or philology

The highest enrollment to date was 947, in 1781. There have always been considerably more law students than theology students; the number of students not enrolled in one of the higher faculties has increased almost every year. No other university has so many students outside the practical, preprofessional departments. Incidentally, the exact number of students can be ascertained here more easily than at other universities because of something useful called a housing registrar. Every semester, this department records the address of every student currently in Göttingen and lists them alphabetically, so that every student can be easily tracked down if need be.

The University of Göttingen enjoys a universal reputation for better-behaved students than at other universities. This is certainly true, in some respects, and quite understandable, because here, due to the large cost increases, there are far fewer poor students than at other universities. In fact, no other university has so many sons of rich, prominent, and noble families, from whom one can expect as a rule a better upbringing and behavior. The majority sets the tone at every university, but here the majority of students are wealthy, as one might expect from the fact that the law students outnumber the theology students. Crass outbursts of bad upbringing, blatant eruptions of loud and crude behavior, such as predominate at other universities, are here naturally seen far more rarely.

Here, immorality is more often found under the veil of refinement. Whether the morals as a whole are better here is another question. Crude excesses may be rarer here than elsewhere, but debauched and profligate young men are not lacking, whose less noticeable unruliness makes them just as unfortunate and useless for the world as the crass licentiousness at other universities. Perhaps the more elegant, less obvious irregularities are the more dangerous, for just this reason. Here the student does not frequent beer hall...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Dedication
• Contents
• General Introduction
• PART 1  German Research Universities
• PART 2  Americans Abroad and Returning
• PART 3  American Adaptations
• PART 4  Undergraduate Education in the University
• PART 5  Diversity and Inclusion: Female University Students
• PART 6  General Education
• Acknowledgments
• Notes
• Bibliography
• Index