Put locals first

Considering the advantages that private schooling traditionally bestows in Great Britain, it is not before time that their scholars were brought into Scotland's traditional, and much respected, democratic academia, which has traditionally nurtured its local pupils from its parish classrooms and conferred on its "lad o pairts" special notice (your report, 20 March).

Some would see our institutions "polluted" enough by interests other than plain good learning. That learning has enabled Scots to leave the parish classroom and imprint their worth across the spectrum of academic and diverse cultural endeavours, from science to aesthetic adventure. Our tradition in education has taught that the world is wider and our aspirations higher than the sort of cosseted culture of ambition that the public, ie private, school ethos appears to nourish.

Edinburgh University has every cause to prefer local candidates. This is wholly in keeping with our parish school tradition of attending the nearest school.

IAN JOHNSTONE

Forman Drive

Peterhead

The language used by Sophie Anderson (Letters, 23 March) is extremely disturbing.

She claims that English students from public schools at Edinburgh University "refuse to mix... yet seek to dominate every aspect of social and academic life".

This is a grave charge indeed. The generalisation is appalling. No doubt there are groups of Scots students who attempt to dominate aspects of University life also.

ALEXANDER MCKAY

New Cut Rigg

Edinburgh