local students who head abroad for further education say, because Bermuda is flooded with international businesses, they are encouraged to pursue specialised degrees in the business-related areas of accounting, insurance and computers. Royal Gazette student reporter Lakilah Harrigan , in the second in a two-part series, asked students, professors, the Ministry of Education and scholarship committees about the value of a liberal arts education and whether scholarships funds were available for students not pursuing specialised degrees. Are scholarship funds readily available to students pursuing liberal arts degrees, or are they directed toward students in specialist fields? Pharmacy student Kareema Sharrieff said she felt there was not enough scholarship money available to students pursuing professions which typically required a first degree in liberal arts -- such as the medical profession.

"Business scholarships are more abundant than scholarships for the medical professions,'' she said. Statistics obtained from the Ministry of Education showed that 80 percent of Government funds are allocated to students pursuing specialised degrees in education and business fields. But Minister of Education Milton Scott said no preference was shown between specialised and liberal arts degree students. And Education Permanent Secretary Michelle Khaldun said the scholarship committee looked at each applicant in terms of the scholarship they applied for, not what they were studying. Bank of Bermuda senior vice president of human resources Mark Perreault noted that all scholarship committees had a role to play in encouraging Bermuda's youth to study a wide array of subjects. He said: "The key to the success of any society is the diversity within it. All disciplines have a part to play in educating students and this includes a liberal arts degree. "Education is an important part of young Bermudians' development. "Bank of Bermuda offers its scholarships to young Bermudians to encourage them to achieve their aspirations through the pursuit of higher education, and this includes liberal arts degrees,'' he added. And producer of the annual scholarship directory, the Bank of Butterfield, expressed a similar sentiment. Spokeswoman Karla Lacey-Minors said: "The scholarship committee does not take the type of degree to be earned into consideration when awarding scholarships. "Rather we look at the academic record/potential, leadership ability, community and sports involvement and character of the individual,'' she continued. But she said only one of the students receiving a scholarship at the undergraduate level from the bank was pursuing a liberal arts degree. And a total of five scholarship winners were pursuing a second or third degree in the liberal arts, she added. When asked whether it was understood that many professional programmes required a first degree, all scholarship committee spokespeople said they did. Mr. Perreault said: "Bank of Bermuda understands that students must often obtain a first degree before they complete a specialist degree.'' But Ms Lacey-Minors noted: "Of course, applicants are asked to speak to future goals when applying.''