Japan by the Japanese/Chapter 13.3
III.—University Education in Japan
Specially prepared in the Imperial University, Tokyo
In the past twenty-five years the Imperial University of Tokyo has produced some 5,000 graduates, of whom 300 have died, and the Kyoto Imperial University less than 100; thus, it will be seen that the University graduates in Japan number at present less than 4,800. In all professions and the various branches of business University graduates are in great demand, but the Universities supply only about 500 graduates annually. That the supply of graduates is insufficient is shown by the following figures, taken from reliable statistics: Among 1,700 judicial officers (Judges and public procurators included) there are only 300. Graduates holding the position of high executive officials number something over 400, the whole number of these officials being 3,200. And out of the 4,300 teachers in middle schools, only about 300 are University graduates. Physicians and surgeons number over 40,000; only 600 of these have received a University education. I have enumerated the above four professions because the statistics are easily procurable, but that the need of the University graduate is felt in all professions cannot be doubted. This state of things existing, even graduates of ordinary ability find much less difficulty in obtaining lucrative situations in professional ranks than is the case in Europe and America. Thus, University education is coveted by all classes in Japan. More young men desire to enter the Universities than these are able to accommodate, and in consequence a very strict entrance examination has been instituted for admission into the higher schools, which are the preparatory schools for the Universities. Not more than one-third of the applicants pass and are admitted into the higher schools, the other two-thirds having to wait for the next examination, or else change the line of their education. The parents, guardians, and friends of the disappointed candidates are therefore clamorous for the establishment of more Universities. This question has become almost a national one, and the present Minister of Education announced in the last session of the Imperial Parliament that he would ask for Parliamentary support for a North-East University in the near future. There can be no manner of doubt that in a few years we shall have the pleasure of welcoming the newly-born sister University, say in Sendai.
In order to understand the conditions of University education in Japan, one must understand something of primary and secondary education. In the primary schools the ordinary course of study is a four-year course, during which elementary lessons in the three R’s are given, together with moral and physical instruction. It is obligatory on the parents and guardians of all children who have attained the age of six to send them to the primary school, and to allow them to finish the ordinary course there. In the primary schools, besides the ordinary course, a higher course of two, three, or four years may be taken by those who have completed the ordinary course. Boys who have passed through the two-year higher course are eligible for admission into the first-year class of a middle school (secondary school for boys). There are at present 258 middle schools in Japan; most of these find their scholars among boys from primary schools, and as a result it has been found necessary in many middle schools to institute competitive entrance examinations. Thus, it happens that although boys who have finished the second year of the higher course in the primary schools are eligible for advancement to the first-year class in a middle school, it is not until they have finished the third, or even the fourth, year in a higher course that they are admitted. Out of 46,570 applicants for admission into the first-year class last April, only 26,622 were successful, of whom 12,737 had finished the four-year higher course in primary schools, 9,404 the three-year course, and only 4,017 the two-year course. This gives percentages of 48, 35, and 15.
Ten years ago there were only 63 middle schools, so that in ten years these schools show a fourfold increase. This sudden growth is due to many causes. In the Japanese educational system, those who aspire to higher education, not only in the Universities, but also in commercial, technical, and military ranks, must be graduates of middle schools, or else they must possess equivalent attainments, to obtain admission to the higher institutions of learning. Since the Chino-Japanese War, also, the people have been suddenly awakened to a sense of the need of higher education. Both these are undoubtedly causes which have prompted the establishment of more middle schools. Another cause, although a less weighty one, is the increased feeling of the necessity of a higher general education for those not desirous of entering official or professional careers, but who, nevertheless, feel the need, both as business men and as citizens, of possessing a more thorough education than that of the primary schools. Again, the scholars of the middle schools, as well as those of higher institutions, are exempt from military service until they have reached the age of twenty-eight. Graduates of the middle schools have the privilege of performing their military service as volunteers for one year, instead of as conscripts for three years. This privilege is also extended to any passing an examination before the military authorities which shows that they possess an equivalent literary and scientific knowledge. Another privilege enjoyed by the middle school graduates is that of being appointed hanin officials. Whatever may be the causes at present, there are more than 250 middle schools; and, in spite of the fact that the present Minister of Education discourages rather than encourages the establishment of more middle schools, many people, and among them some of the most experienced in educational matters, are not satisfied with the present number. The officials of the Department of Education argue that it is much better for young men to enter the technical, commercial, or agricultural schools than to spend five years in a middle school, as it is not possible that they should all be admitted into the higher institutions of learning, whose accommodation is indeed very limited. But, on the other hand, others argue that the smattering of commerce, technology, or agriculture, such as is imparted to the scholars of those schools of equal rank with middle schools, is not to be compared with the liberal middle school education. The former could be learnt in a few years of practical life, whereas the latter could never be obtained by those not graduates of middle schools. This loss would seem to be so irreparable to the scholars as to render reasonable the demands of those people who desire more middle schools.
The principal defect of the middle schools is at present the lack of good teachers. The Tokyo Higher Normal School turns out about 100 graduates annually, and a new higher normal school is to be opened next September in Hiroshima. These schools, however, can barely supply teachers to the ordinary normal schools of the prefectures. Some University graduates enter the profession of teaching, but in those departments of the Universities which might furnish teachers—namely, those devoted to literature and science—the number of students is comparatively small. Hence the teachers are mostly recruited from among those that have passed the State examinations qualifying for the profession of teaching; this number is about 500 annually. This number, if properly distributed, would probably be sufficient to make up the deficiencies in the ranks of the teachers of the middle schools; the distribution is, however, so arranged that those who have passed examinations in such subjects as English or the sciences are extremely few, while there are many who are granted certificates for such subjects as caligraphy, etc.
All the defects of the middle schools may be traced directly or indirectly to the lack of good teachers. The authorities are well aware of this pressing need, and are trying to remedy it. As a means to this end they have established training schools in connection with the Tokyo Imperial University. A school of Japanese and Chinese Languages and Literature has been founded in connection with the College of Literature of the University, and one of Natural Science in connection with the Science College of the University. Besides these there are the following: The First Higher School (a school of physics and chemistry), the Second Higher School (a school of mathematics), the Third Higher School (school of English language and literature), and the Foreign Language School (a school of English language and literature). The scholars in these training schools are recruited from among the graduates of middle schools and ordinary normal schools. Some people are inclined to doubt whether such training schools are able to turn out good teachers—at least, as far as it is a question of proficiency in certain branches of study. As the courses in all of them are only for two years, it could hardly be expected that the scholars should be well fitted for teachers, inasmuch as some subjects are confessedly ill-taught in the middle and ordinary normal schools.
The foreign languages taken in the middle school course may be one of three—English, French, or German. The time allotted to English is seven hours a week during the first four years, and six hours a week during the fifth year. In none of the schools is French taught, and in only one or two German; in the vast majority the foreign language taught is English. It must be confessed that, although much time is spent in the study of English, the result does not seem to be commensurate with the labour spent. Ordinary graduates would probably find it difficult to write intelligible business letters, or to read easily the daily newspapers, while it is rare to meet one of them able to speak English. A radical reform in this respect is pressingly necessary.
The number of boys admitted into the middle schools last April is reported to be over 26,000, and the total number of scholars is a little over 102,000. In a few years the number of graduates should rise at the lowest calculation to 10,000 annually. Judging from the ratio that the total number of the graduates of the middle schools (in last April, 9,003) bears to the number of candidates for admission into the higher schools (in last July, 4,459), the number of candidates for admission into the higher schools would rise to be not far from 5,000, while the higher schools can accommodate only about 1,600 annually. As a result, not a few unfortunate young men, who have been unsuccessful in the competitive examination, disappointed and disheartened, drift into leading lives of dissipation, and lose for ever the chance of becoming useful members of society. Failure in an examination is not necessarily equivalent to lack of talent, and thus sometimes higher schools, and consequently Universities, lose many young men who might prove themselves men of great promise, and the loss to the country may be serious enough to be worth consideration.
From this it may be seen that those who advocate the increase of higher schools have reason to back their arguments.
Of the successful candidates for admission into the higher schools, there were 8 Kwazokus (nobles), 543 Shizokus (descendants of the bannerets of the feudal times, or Samurai), and 1,047 Heimins. The percentages are: Kwazoku, 0.5; Shizoku, 34.0; Heimin, 65.5.
Excluding the island of Taiwan (Formosa), the population of Japan, according to the latest census, is 43,758,415 (excluding foundlings and unregistered prisoners under sentence), of which the Kwazoku number 4,551; the Shizoku, 2,105,698; and Heimin, 41,548,166; so that the percentages are as follows: Kwazoku, 0.01; Shizoku, 4.81; Heimin, 95.18.
Setting aside the Kwazokus, out of every 100 successful candidates, at most only 5 should be Shizokus. Of 451 graduates of the Tokyo Imperial University last July, 219 were Shizokus and 228 were Heimins, thus showing the same discrepancies of the ratios of the graduates to the total number of the two classes of people. The cause of this is not far to seek. The Shizokus had been the governing class during the feudal system until the Restoration, in the year 1868. Tradition in a Shizoku family cannot but make its sons ambitious—a fact that makes them aspire for higher education, as the latter alone can raise them above the mass of the people. Another cause may be found in the following fact: Most of the higher officials, and a great many successful professional men, are of Shizoku extraction, and their sons, brothers, and relatives and friends, are apt to desire to enter official or professional lives, for which, of course, higher education is a necessary qualification.
Shizokus are generally very poor, and yet, in spite of it, some of them with slender means of subsistence manage to have their sons obtain a University education. This may seem to be utterly inexplicable to the uninitiated; it is, however, quite easy of explanation. In the first place, if a young man distinguishes himself in the middle school, the members of his family are generally ready to make any sacrifice or to undergo any hardships to secure his education. A case has been known where a sister, to aid in defraying the cost of her younger brother’s education, has entered the profession of Geisha—a profession which, while not an honourable one, is not necessarily a degrading one. This may be, perhaps, an extreme case, but many cases occur in which the parents of University students lead hand-to-mouth lives for their sons. Then, there are a great many student aid societies, whose function is to lend sufficient means to those students in higher schools or Universities whose families are not sufficiently affluent to be able to furnish their sons with the means necessary for their education. Such societies are generally local, a number of men from the same locality (men, probably, who have been poor students themselves) meeting together and constituting a society to aid poor scholars from their own locality. The scholars thus assisted afterwards return the money thus lent them, with or without interest. There are hundreds of societies of this description, and the good which they have done and are doing for the cause of higher education is incalculable. And, then, in the families of higher officials and of professional men one generally finds one or two young men who are found to be in attendance in some Government or private schools. These young men are lodged and boarded in the families—indeed, sometimes all expenses paid besides—and sent to school, they, in return, doing odd services for the families when not at school. A great many of the higher officials and professional men themselves passed through the life of shosei, as the life of such a student is called, and the system has been of so great a service that it is to be hoped that it may long continue.
There are eight higher schools, all of which are under the direct control of the Minister of Education. Some of them used to have, besides the preparatory course for the Universities, a department of medicine, which, however, was last year made an independent school. One at Kumamoto has a department of engineering. Excepting the Kumamoto Higher School, all the others are now purely preparatory schools. As has been remarked before, the number of applicants for admission is far above the number that the shools can accommodate, and a competitive examination is held to select the best-fitted students. Each candidate sends in a written application to the Minister of Education through any one of the higher schools, designating the college in the University which he wishes to enter, and naming the higher schools in order of his choice. The examination takes place in July, and the subjects of the examination are made known in April or May by the Minister of Education. They are taken from the lists of subjects studied in the middle schools, and are not to be the same from year to year. The subjects were, at the last examination, Japanese and Chinese languages, mathematics, a foreign language, physics, chemistry, and geography. The ‘foreign language’ is to be in all cases English, except for those who wish to take the courses of German law and German literature in the University course, when German is accepted instead of English; and for those wishing to study French law and French literature French is accepted as the foreign language of the examination. Besides this, German is accepted instead of English for some fifty students passing for the medical course. All these are admitted only to the First Higher School (Tokyo). All the applicants are examined on the same days and hours, in the different higher schools, each one being examined in that school through which he had sent in his application. The answers are collected and sent to the Department of Education, where a specially appointed committee examines the papers and assigns the marks. The aggregate of marks, due weight being given to the different subjects, determines the applicant’s standing. A list is made of all those who wish to enter a particular college, in order of their merit. The applicants are then admitted to the schools of their first choice, in the order of merit. If the number of applicants for a particular school reaches the fixed number of admissions, those with the lesser marks have to go to the school of their second choice, and so on. This system was tried for the first time last July, and proved to be undoubtedly the best way of selecting the most completely prepared applicants. For their competitive examinations, young men exert themselves to the utmost during their fifth year in the middle schools, and also during the time between their graduation in April and the examination in July. It is to be feared, however, that many young men lose their health by this overzealous application to study, and this is another argument for the advocates for the increasing of the institutions for higher education. This competitive examination is one of the causes which raise the average age of University graduates to over twenty-six, instead of twenty-three or twenty-four. In the ordinary way a child enters a primary school at six years of age; six years afterwards he enters a middle school (at twelve); five years afterwards he enters a higher school (at seventeen); three years after he enters a University, and after three or four years he must graduate (at twenty three or four).
The course of the higher schools is divided into three sections. The first section is the preparatory course for those who wish to enter the Law and Literature Colleges of the University, the subjects taught being: Morals, Japanese and Chinese languages, foreign languages, history, logic and psychology, elements of law, elements of political economy, and gymnastics. The foreign languages are English, German, and French, of which any two are to be selected; but for those who wish to take the course of German law or German literature, and who studied English only in the middle school, German is not only obligatory, but the time devoted to it is much increased; this is also the case with respect to French. Also there are some slight differences in the curriculum according to the courses of study that they are to follow in the University. In the second section, where are found those who are to enter the Engineering, Science and Agriculture Colleges, or the pharmaceutical course of the Medical College, the curriculum includes morals, Japanese language, English, German (or French), mathematics, physics, chemistry, geology and mineralogy, drawing, and gymnastics. Here English is obligatory to all, and either German or French is to be selected; there are some differences in the third year curriculum for the different courses. In the third or medical section, the subjects taught are morals, Japanese, German, English (or French), Latin, mathematics, physics, chemistry, zoology and botany, and gymnastics. Here German is given first place, and English or French is to be selected as an additional language. For those who have entered the higher school after an examination in English, the time devoted to German is much more than for others. In the first section more than 30 per cent. of the total time is spent in the study of each of the foreign languages, in the second section more than 20 per cent., whereas in the third section the time spent for the study of German reaches 40 per cent., and for English or French 10 per cent.; so that the percentages of the total times taken up by European languages are respectively 60 per cent., 40 per cent., and 50 per cent. for the first, second, and third sections. In spite of the fact that so much time is spent in the study of the European languages, the knowledge of these languages possessed by the University student is far from being satisfactory, and what is more deplorable is the fact that this deficiency shows signs of increasing from year to year. Its cause is perfectly evident, the recent sudden increase of middle schools having not been accompanied by an increase in the number of good English teachers. The result is that the students in the higher schools have to grapple with two foreign languages. If they had been well taught in English in the middle schools one of the languages at least would not be so formidable. As it is, however, some educationalists argue for one foreign language in the higher schools instead of two. But surely a professional man, who aims at a high position, could never be satisfied with one language! Certainly it would be impossible for anyone to keep up with the rapid progress of the world, which takes place in all the higher branches of education, with only one European language at his command. If a foreign language is well taught in the middle schools, that language need occupy very little time of the student in the higher school. Thus, it will be seen that the bad teaching of foreign languages in the middle schools is the cause of disastrous result in the branches of higher education. It is not only the teaching of foreign languages, but in all the subjects taught in the middle school there seems to be need of improvement. Many subjects taught in the higher school might be omitted if they were taught well in the middle school. In fact, if sufficient improvement were introduced into the method of teaching, and a sufficient teaching staff employed, and, most important of all, really good teachers procured, we could abolish the system of section division in the higher school, and every student would be able to follow the same curriculum in it. The present system requires every young man to decide upon what course in a college of a University he will pursue when he enters a higher school—that is to say, he has to choose a profession to follow for life, when he is not mature enough to be able to make, perhaps, the wisest choice. Besides this, if sufficient improvements are introduced, perhaps it may be possible to shorten the time spent in the higher schools. The change, desirable as it is, however, could not be accomplished unless great improvements are introduced into the middle schools, a task that requires much time and expense.
The Imperial University is founded in accordance with the Imperial ordinance, No. 3 (March 1, 1886).[1]
The following description applies to the Tokyo University.
The academic year of the University is divided into three terms. The first term extends from the 11th of September to the 24th of December; the second from the 8th of January to the 31st of March; while the third term begins on the 8th of April and ends on the 10th of July. The lectures are suspended on Sundays, the national holidays, and the foundation-day.
In the College of Law the student has to take one of the two courses, namely, Law and Politics. This college is attended by more students than any other college, the number being over a thousand. One must study at least four years to be graduated from this college.
Besides lectures on the above subjects, exercises shall be conducted, with the view of training students by conversations, or essays, or by any other means the professor in charge of the exercises may choose. Subjects for such practical exercises may be decided upon at the faculty meeting.
In the College of Law the class system has been entirely abolished, a feature peculiarly its own, distinguishing it from all the other colleges. The student may continue to be a member of the college for any number of years, and he undergoes an examination at his own request. A student who has been a member of the college for a year has the privilege of being present at the first examination; if successful, he may be allowed to be present at the second examination. And he may present himself at the third and fourth examinations after having successfully passed the second and third examinations.
If the student be successful in these four examinations, he is further examined in some five subjects selected from among the subjects for lectures in the respective courses. Those who succeed in this graduation examination are granted the title of Hogakushi. Ho means law, and, although gakushi is sometimes translated ‘doctor,’ ‘licentiate’ is probably more proper, so that the Hogakushi may be rendered ‘the licentiate of law.’ The Hogakushi who has taken the course of Law is admitted to the membership of the Bar, and can practise without undergoing any State examinations; and, further, he is eligible to the probationership of law officers. No Hogakushi is exempt from the State examinations for the higher civil and diplomatic service, except the preliminary one for the former. It is thought by many that this is manifestly unjust to the Hogakushi, since he has already passed a much more difficult State examination at the University, as nearly all the subjects for the State service examinations are contained in the examination list of the University. On the other hand, it is argued that it is not every Hogakushi that is able to pass successfully the ordeal of the State examinations, and therefore if the privilege of exemption from the examination for the State service be granted to all the graduates of the Law College, the service will suffer from the low standard of attainment among the candidates for the position of higher responsibility. But in reply it may be said that the attainments of the licentiate are certainly high enough to insure the efficient civil and diplomatic service, and that the only effect of the severity of the State examination is to lessen the number of those from whom men of practical ability (which can never be ascertained by an examination) are to be selected for the State service. It is evident that the system needs a radical reform.
The College of Medicine.
The courses established in the Medical College are the course of Medicine and that of Pharmacy. The course of Medicine extends over four years.
At the end of each academic year the student is examined in all the subjects pursued during the year, and when he has passed successfully the examination at the end of the fourth year he is ready to receive the graduation examination, which takes place during the next academic year. The subjects are divided into the following three sections:
| I. | Anatomical and Physiological. |
| II. | Surgical and Ophthalmological. |
| III. | Medical and Obstetrical. |
A change of the system of examination is said to be under consideration, and therefore further particulars are omitted. The title of Igakushi (licentiate of medicine) is granted to the successful candidate in the examination.
A hospital sufficiently large to accommodate 570 in-patients is attached to the Medical College, into which are admitted such patients as may be deemed instructive cases in medical and surgical investigation. It also contains laboratories for carrying out researches upon subjects relating to the sciences of medicine and surgery. Beside ordinary patients, the hospital admits free patients; that is, the treatment is not only free to them, but medicine and food are furnished gratis, and even clothes are sometimes lent free. A part of the present building is being rebuilt, and is to be enlarged somewhat, the estimates having already been approved by the Imperial Parliament. Even when this scheme of enlargement shall have been accomplished, it will be too small for the present needs of the college, and a further enlargement is to be hoped for in the near future. Among the new buildings already constructed or in the course of construction, a large number are designated as the laboratories of anatomy, physiology, medical chemistry, pharmacology, hygiene, and forensic medicine, the old laboratories having been found too small and inconvenient. The laboratories are to be provided with everything necessary for demonstrations and researches. The utmost encouragement is given to original research; the results obtained have been published in the four volumes of the Mittheilungen aus der Medicinischen Facultät, which are well known in the medical world.
Those who have finished the three years’ course have to undergo a written, a practical, and an oral examination. In the first they are examined in Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Pharmacography, and Dispensing; in the second, in Analysis, Japanese Pharmacopœia, Pharmaceutical Chemistry (practical), Dispensing (practical), Forensic Chemistry (practical), and Sanitary Chemistry (practical); in the third, in Pharmacography, Medical Botany, Organic Chemistry, Forensic Chemistry, and Sanitary Chemistry. The title of Yakugakushi (licentiate of pharmacy) is granted to the successful candidate. This course is one of the least popular, and the average number of graduates during the last ten years has been less than two.
The Engineering College.
The following nine courses, each of which extends over three years, have been established in the Engineering College:
| I. | Civil Engineering. |
| II. | Mechanical Engineering. |
| III. | Naval Architecture. |
| IV. | Technology of Arms. |
| V. | Electrical Engineering. |
| VI. | Architecture. |
| VII. | Applied Chemistry. |
| VIII. | Technology of Explosives. |
| IX. | Mining and Metallurgy. |
The title of Kogakushi (licentiate of engineering) is granted to the student who has successfully passed one of these nine courses. Much importance is laid on practical training, the object of which is to give to students the knowledge for the practical application of scientific principles. For this purpose students are trained either in the college or else they are sent out to see various establishments or institutions of industry related to their respective studies. The laboratories are all provided with machines, tools, apparatus, instruments, etc., and are under the control of the various professors. Original investigations are much encouraged. The museums of the college are seven in number—for Civil Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Naval Architecture, Electric Engineering, Architecture, Applied Chemistry, and for Mining and Metallurgy. The collections in the above comprise models, samples, specimens, instruments, etc. The Engineering College is one of the most popular among Japanese students, and sometimes the number of applications for admission exceeds that which the college is prepared to receive; and it is evident that increased facilities for the University study of Engineering are an urgent necessity.
The College of Literature.
In the College of Literature the following nine courses, each extending over a period of three years, have been established:
| I. | Philosophy. |
| II. | Japanese Literature. |
| III. | Chinese Literature. |
| IV. | Japanese History. |
| V. | History. |
| VI. | Comparative Philology. |
| VII. | English Literature. |
| VIII. | German Literature. |
| IX. | French Literature. |
The title of Bungakushi (licentiate of literature) is granted to the student who has successfully finished one of the courses. Attached to this college there is a committee for the compilation of materials for the history of Japan, presided over by one of the professors of the college. It has collected ancient documents and records, copied from old originals kept in old Buddhist and Shinto temples, or preserved for generations by certain ancient families. Of such ancient documents the total number is about 100,000, while there are nearly 2,000 volumes of old records. It has already published four volumes of the ‘Materials’ and two of ‘Ancient Documents.’
The College of Science.
The following eight subjects form the courses in the College of Science:
| I. | Mathematics. |
| II. | Astronomy. |
| III. | Theoretical Physics. |
| IV. | Experimental Physics. |
| V. | Zoology. |
| VI. | Botany. |
| VII. | Chemistry. |
| VIII. Geology. |
In addition to these courses of study, special lectures on seismology and anthropology, etc., are given in the College of Science for the students of other colleges, especially for the students of Civil Engineering and Architecture in the Engineering College, and for the students of History and Philology in the Literature College.
The student who has successfully passed one of these courses is permitted to call himself Rigakushi (licentiate of science).
The college is one of the least popular, the number of students being little over one-third of what it could accommodate. The laboratories attached to this college are well equipped with instruments, apparatus, etc., and much original work has been done, the account of which has been published in the fifteen volumes of the Journal of the College of Science, a periodical well known among specialists. The Zoological, Geological, and Anthropological Museums and Botanical Herbarium are provided with very good collections. The Tokyo Astronomical Observatory is a part of this college, and it publishes annals in the French language. The Botanical Garden of the University, situated about a mile north-west of the University, with an area of about 40 acres, is under the control of this college. Students of Botany, Entomology, and Pharmacy spend a portion of their time in it. The University is the birthplace of the science of seismology; in fact, before the investigation undertaken by our professors almost nothing was known about the precise nature, the mode of propagation, etc., of earthquakes, and no seismometer existed. In the short time of some twenty years the science has been created here by our professors. The Seismological Observatory attached to this college is perhaps the best-equipped one in the world, and much active work is done. The Marine Biological Station of the University is also a part of the College of Science, situated at the extremity of the peninsula jutting out between the Bay of Sagami and the Gulf of Tayko. The station has access to localities long famous as the home of some remarkable animal forms, and it has been for the last seventeen years the centre of researches in marine zoology in Japan. The station is primarily intended for the use of the instructors and students of the University, but its facilities are extended as far as possible to other persons who are qualified to avail themselves of the opportunities of research here afforded. For the last two years a summer course in practical zoology has been given for the benefit of teachers of intermediate schools.
The College of Agriculture.
In the College of Agriculture the courses are Agriculture, Agricultural Chemistry, Forestry, and Veterinary Medicine.
The graduates of this college are entitled to call themselves Nogakushi (licentiate of agriculture), Ringakushi (licentiate of forestry), and Juigakushi (licentiate of veterinary medicine), according as they have taken one of the first two courses, the third course, or the last course. In the course of Veterinary Medicine the student has to undergo a graduation examination at the end of the third year instead of annual examinations in Anatomy, Physiology, Pharmacology, Pathology, Surgery, Pathological Anatomy, Horse-shoeing (practical), and Hospital Practice and Ambulatory Clinics. The college is situated in one of the suburbs of the city, and occupies extensive grounds of about 138 acres. It is well provided with an experimental farm, a nursery, botanic garden, etc. The laboratories and museums are equipped with collections of apparatus, instruments, models, specimens, etc. A veterinary hospital of the college is open to the public. Extensive training forests in different parts of the country are also attached to the college. The college forest in Chiba Prefecture covers about an area of 2,171 cho (1 cho=2.4507 acres), and is divided into the Kiyosumi and the Okuzan Forest by the boundary-line of the provinces of Awa and Kazusa. This forest is intended to serve for the practical instruction in forestry and for the investigations undertaken by the professors and students in the Forestry Department of the college. It is hoped that it also may serve as a model of scientific forest management. The college forest in Hokkaido, established in October, 32nd year of Meiji, has an approximate area of some 23,000 cho. It is situated on the right bank of the upper course of the Sorachi River in Sorachi Gun, Ishikari Prefecture. It forms an almost perfect rectangle extending from west to east. Along the river and at the bottom of the valleys the forest consists almost exclusively of broad-leaved trees, whilst conifers are found more and more as we ascend, until these form almost a pure wood at the top. The whole forest has been left in a primeval state, the forester’s axe having never been used.
The Bulletin of the College of Agriculture is the periodical of the college for the publication of original researches carried out by the professors. The four volumes already published are well known among the specialists of agriculture and veterinary medicine. Besides the regular course, subsidiary courses in Agriculture, Forestry, and Veterinary Medicine have been established, each of which extends over three years, and is open to the graduates of the middle schools.
The graduates of the colleges whom the faculties concerned consider sufficiently qualified to pursue further studies, may, on application, be admitted into the University Hall, where the student is required to select some subject of investigation to be undertaken, generally under the superintendence of a professor. No regular courses of lectures are given in the University Hall, and the student is free to pursue the study of the subject. At the end of the five years he may send in a thesis on the subject; and if it is found satisfactory, the second degree of Hakushi, with the prefix of Hogaku, Igaku, Nogaku, Ringaku, or Yakugaku, Kogaku, Bungaku, Rigaku, or Juigaku, according to the nature of the subject, is granted by the Minister of Education.
The tuition fee paid by the student of the University is only 25 yen (about £2 10s.) per annum, excepting in the Engineering College, where a further sum of 10 yen is charged for materials used, such as drawing-paper, pencils, etc. The fee is certainly very moderate, and some educationalists are for increasing the fee for the purpose of augmenting the University income, which is sadly too small for the great work expected of it. The other point of view is that there are a great many University students who can ill afford the additional burden on their purse, and the fee had best be left as it is.
The University needs an increase of buildings for lecture-rooms, seminaries, laboratories, hospitals, etc., and a dormitory is sadly needed. Additional ground is needed for these new buildings. It is estimated that all this can be accomplished for about 12,000,000 yen (about £1,200,000), and, further, an increase of about 50 per cent. of the present annual income would not be too much to satisfy the pressing needs of the University.
To show the inclinations of the Japanese student toward different professions, the following table is appended:
The Number of Graduates during the Ten Years to 1900 in the Different Courses of the University of Tokyo.
| College of Law. | |||||
|
651 |  |
1041 | ||
|
390 | 
| |||
| College of Medicine. | |||||
|
334 | |
352 | ||
|
18 |
| |||
| College of Engineering. | |||||
|
232 |  |
817 | ||
|
58 | 
| |||
|
75 |
| |||
|
15 |
| |||
|
117 | 
| |||
|
36 |
| |||
|
69 |
| |||
|
1 |
| |||
|
114 | 
| |||
| College of Literature. | |||||
|
159 | |
530 | ||
|
46 |
| |||
|
54 |
| |||
|
87 |
| |||
|
106 |
| |||
|
12 |
| |||
|
46 |
| |||
|
17 |
| |||
|
3 |
| |||
| College of Science. | |||||
|
20 | |
194 | ||
|
4 |
| |||
|
75 |
| |||
|
32 |
| |||
|
17 |
| |||
|
14 |
| |||
|
32 |
| |||
| College of Agriculture. | |||||
|
73 | |
192 | ||
|
50 | 
| |||
|
73 | 
| |||
|
20 |
| |||
Grand Total … … … 3,126
The percentages are as follows:
Law, 33.3; Medicine, 11.3; Engineering, 26.1; Literature, 17.0; Science, 6.2; Agriculture, 6.1.
The following table shows the number of the regular undergraduate students in the different courses, September, 1901:
College of Law.—Law, 567; Politics, 409. Total, 976.
College of Medicine.—Medicine, 390, excluding those who are undergoing the graduation examination; Pharmacy, 2. Total, 395.
College of Engineering.—Civil Engineering, 104; Mechanical Engineering, 65; Marine Engineering, 35; Naval Architecture, 62; Technology of Arms, 13; Electrical Engineering, 48; Architecture, 24; Applied Chemistry, 26; Technology of Explosives, 1; Mining and Metallurgy, 47. Total, 425.
College of Literature.—Philosophy, 92; Japanese Literature, 91; Chinese Literature, 21; Japanese History, 28; History, 48; Comparative Philology, 2; English Literature, 39; German Literature, 17. Total, 278.
College of Science.—Mathematics, 7; Astronomy, 1; Physics, 29; Chemistry, 6; Zoology and Botany, 11; Geology, 9. Total, 63.
College of Agriculture.—Agriculture, 18; Agricultural Chemistry, 13; Forestry, 30; Veterinary Medicine, 4. Total, 65.
Full total, 2,202. The full number is 3,213, including 449 students in the University Hall, elective students, and others.The percentages are as follows:
Law, 44.3; Medicine, 17.9; Engineering, 19.3; Literature, 12.6; Science, 2.9; Agriculture, 3.0.
These numbers, compared with those of the graduates of the last ten years, at the first glance seem to show a decrease of students of Engineering, Literature, and Agriculture. It is by no means to be taken in that sense. The following table will show the number of graduates of the colleges in 1897 and 1902:
| 1897. | 1902. | ||||
|
67 | 141 | |||
|
25 | 94 | |||
|
78 | 117 | |||
|
62 | 67 | |||
|
26 | 12 | |||
|
16 | 20 | |||
| 274 | 451 |
Comparing the two columns, one sees that there is an increase in every college except in that of Science; in the College of Engineering the absolute numbers, instead of a decrease, show an enormous increase. In fact, in all the colleges except that of Science the absolute number of graduates have increased, but at different rates, so that the percentage, for instance, for the Engineering College has decreased; that is to say, the increase has been relatively small compared to those of the Colleges of Law and Medicine.
There is a great outcry among some educationalists against the length of the time spent in education. Supposing that one is always successful in all the competitive examinations, it is not till he is twenty-three or twenty-four years of age that he succeeds in finishing his education. We are, they say, a race that matures early and decays early, and so cannot afford to spend so much precious time in a mere preparation for the struggle of life. Moreover, the mean age of the graduates of the Tokyo University for the three years from 1899 to 1901 is twenty-six years and nine months, which is far too high. The divergence of the actual mean age from the minimum age is due partly to the competitive examinations and partly to failure to pass annual and graduation examinations on the part of the students. There are reasons to believe that the failures will become less frequent in the future. There is no reason to think that we mature and decay earlier than other races; on the contrary, such facts as we are in possession of are conclusively against the belief. For example, our medical authorities have proved irrefutably that the Japanese woman does not reach puberty earlier than her European sister. The theory of early maturity and decay seems to be a favourite among some people, but there is no foundation for it whatever. Further, to finish one’s liberal education at twenty-three or twenty-four may, perhaps, be too late; but our University education is professional, and to enter the professions of, say, law or medicine at the age of twenty-three or twenty-four prepared in all respects is not, surely, too late. There is something more necessary than a mere change in the system; we require more Universities, and consequently more higher schools.
- ↑ A list of the Chairs in the various Colleges is given in Appendix E.