ABSTRACT
The model of the university as a training camp for the professions seems quite naturally to imply the principle of an aristocracy of competence. The anti-ideal of the university as a staging area of revolution embodies the political doctrine made popular by the theorists of the New Left: participatory democracy. The primary function of such a university is to train candidates for the professions and then admit them to active practice by certifying them as competent to perform the professional duties required of them. The point can best be made by means of an example from a different sector of university life—the discriminatory fraternity or social club. Like Democratic Pluralism, the principle of Participatory Democracy is a general political principle which is applied by its adherents in many contexts other than the university. Participatory democracy is a call for a revitalization of the ideal of direct participation.
