ABSTRACT
This paper deals with the respective roles and status of ‘generalists’ and ‘professionals’ in the British Civil Service. By ‘generalists’ is meant the administrative and executive classes in the home Civil Service, i.e. those who have had a good non-vocational education; by ‘professionals’, those recruited to posts for which a professional, scientific, technical or other specialist qualification is essential, e.g. corporate membership of a recognized professional institution, honours degree in science, economics or statistics, an appropriate technical qualification, etc. The professionals include architects, engineers, surveyors, scientists, doctors, lawyers, economists, statisticians, psychologists, and many other professions and disciplines.
