Imperial examination

system used in appointing officials in dynastic China

thumb|Wang Qiong of Ming in his Jinshi attire

Academy in Hunan, China

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ministry of imperial China; one of Three Departments and Six Ministries

The ' () or kwagŏ were the national civil service examinations' under the Goryeo (918–1392) and Joseon (1392–1910) periods of Korea. These typically demanding tests measured candidates' ability of writing composition and knowledge of the Chinese classics. The form of writing varied from literature to proposals on management of the state. Technical subjects were also tested to appoint experts on medicine, interpretation, accounting, law etc. These were the primary route for most people to achieve positions in the bureaucracy.

right|thumb|220px|A 15th-century portrait of the Ming dynasty|Ming official [[Jiang Shunfu. The decoration of two egrets on his chest are a "mandarin square", indicating that he was a civil official of the sixth rank.]] The scholar-officials, also known as literati, scholar-gentlemen or scholar-bureaucrats (), were government officials and prestigious scholars in Chinese society, forming a distinct social class.

Taoist deity in Chinese Mythology, known as the God of Culture and Literature

thumb|right|250px|Biyong, the imperial lecture hall in the Beijing Guozijian thumb|right|250px|The imperial lecture hall and classrooms at the Beijing Guozijian thumb|250px|The Six-Dynasty Juniper on the former site of the Nanjing Guozijian thumb|The Stele Forest in [[Xi'an, including the collection of the Chang'an Guozijian of the Sui and Tang]]

essay in Chinese imperial examinations

Juren (; 'recommended man') was a rank achieved by people who passed the xiangshi () exam in the imperial examination system of imperial China. The xiangshi is also known, in English, as the provincial examination. It was a rank higher than the shengyuan rank, but lower than the jinshi rank, which was the highest degree.

Zhuangyuan, or jangwon in Korean and trạng nguyên in Vietnamese, variously translated into English as principal graduate, primus, or optimus, was the title given to the scholar who achieved the highest score on highest level of the Imperial examination, (in the Tang dynasty) and (in the Song dynasty) in imperial China, Gwageo examinations in Goryeo and Joseon era Korea, and Vietnam.

academic facilities of pre-modern east asia

British report catalyzing Her Majesty's Civil Service

building in Nanjing, China