thumbs down yesterday from the Leader of the Opposition in the Senate.

United Bermuda Party Senator Maxwell Burgess said: "I do not agree with the four year idea'' during his reply to the Government's presentation of its education budget in the Upper House.

Sen. Burgess said he feared the idea of Bermudians spending four years at college on-Island would only further encourage the development of a fish bowl mentality.

It could also create a two-tiered education, he warned.

Parents who could afford to would send their children overseas to complete their college education while those who could not would be forced to send their children to Bermuda College.

"This will keep some children in a fish bowl while others swim in the ocean.'' Sen. Burgess also stressed the demands of furthering one's education in the current job market. High-school diplomas no longer cut it and Bachelor's Degrees were also short of the mark, he said.

It was now necessary for students to get their Master's Degree if they wanted to compete for the top jobs on-Island.

Money had to be put aside to fund scholarships for students looking to get their Masters, continued Sen. Burgess.

These scholarships could, in turn, be used to steer students into certain professions such as the hotel industry, Police Service or hospitals by offering them to students pursuing Masters in these areas, he noted.

In an ideal world, he said, students would attend Bermuda College for two years and then go overseas for the final two years of their Bachelor Degree before then heading into study designed to get them their Masters.

More Senate coverage on Page 3 Maxwell Burgess BERMUDA COLLEGE EDC