Cross-regional Participation in National Graduate Admission Examination:The Historical Implications of Shuntian and Shanxi Provincial Examination in the Late Qing Dynasty

Abstract

In the late Qing Dynasty, Renyin and Guimao rural examinations were the last two rural examinations in the history of Chinese imperial examinations. However, under the intrusion of domestic troubles and foreign invaders, the Qing Court had to adopt a compromise method in order to continue the tradition of selecting scholars through the imperial examinations and pick out and promote talents. The imperial examinations were held in Shuntian County in Henan Province and in Shanxi Province in Shaanxi Province, which led to the rare phenomenon of borrowing Wei in the imperial examinations of thousands of years. When the implementation process of the two provinces of the provincial exams borrowed exams are compared, it is found that there are many differences between the two provinces in terms of the time priority, the complexity of admission and delivery, the dispatch of officials and the content of the examination. However, from the perspective of the examination concepts such as the objectives and principles of the borrowed exams, the two provinces have obvious common features, including paying attention to the simplicity of the township examination organization, respecting the independence of provincial township examination, and adhering to the fairness of the imperial examination. From the perspective of the past, the practice experience in the late Qing Dynasty is similar to that in the present. It has important historical revelation for improving the management level and ability of the modernization of the postgraduate entrance examination. Firstly, we should strengthen the construction of the national system of the postgraduate entrance examination in different places, secondly, we should attach importance to the construction of standardized examination centers in different provinces and regions, and thirdly, we should improve the coordination mechanism of the resources of the postgraduate entrance examination in different places.