User blog comment:WarrenWitch/Yang nails it, Pyrrha gets her man, Weiss chooses the lesser of two evils...and Ruby hits a crow/@comment-11942246-20130816050909/@comment-10390252-20130816122449

@ Zolnir,

Interesting... Now you seem to be arguing my point for me. We both agree that Ozpin would not put the students into a situation where they were not ready to confront. Where we differ is in what level we think the students are ready to face.

1) You have no evidence to suggest the students have faced a graduation test against live foes other than Ruby's experience in the Red Trailer, which could easily have been a freak anomaly - that's just your Deathworld kill-or-be-killed fantasy speaking;

2) Weiss specifically states her opinion that a younger student would not be ready to face live foes; from her reaction to the Beowolves' appearance (petrified terror) something tells me it's something for which someone who has completed four years Basic isn't ready either.

3) Assuming Ozpin doesn't want his students whittled down in number, why would he and Glynda be so cool after their launch? Especially given Jaune's total out-of-control tumble? Because they knew the students were in no real danger beyond a very strictly-limited level of danger that they knew about and could control.  That implies robots and other simulated foes.  Heck, I wouldn't even be surprised if there were hidden Dust energy 'catch nets' for any student who didn't slow themselves enough before landing;

4) The students' body language, even Ruby's, didn't suggest they really thought they were going into a live combat zone.  I've seen the real thing in documentaries - they look thoughtful, focussed and even fearful.  Instead, the students looked like they were going to have a grand time showing off for the watching members of the Faculty.  The students' behaviour suggests total psychological unreadiness for combat and, assuming Ozpin had the slightest interest in having any graduates from this class, he would be an idiot if he allowed a potentially lethal test to proceed with them in that mental and emotional state;

5) It is unlikely that the Faculty would be able to monitor all the students closely enough to guarantee their safety in the inheritly unpredictable world of live combat.  Death in a real combat zone can come in an instant from any direction with no warning whatsoever.  From the look of those Beowolves, they could probably decabitate or eviscerate a human with a single blow; they are not a controllable or predictable threat;

So, in summary, the Students have demonstrated they are not ready for live combat. The academy could not guarantee (even to a reasonable degree) their safety in a lethal combat zone. We are agreed that the academy would not let them face foes which they were not able to fight. Logic suggests that the Beowolves are a wildcard, something that has sneaked into the combat zone since the last safety check by the authorities and that the students are about to experience an unplanned baptism of fire from which I think some will not return.