Source: David Friedman’s Substack
by David Friedman
“For well over a thousand years, the civil service of Imperial China, the officials who ran the empire, was principally selected from those who had successfully passed through a series of ferociously competitive exams. Passing the first level gave one the rank of licentiate, which carried with it status and the right to take the second level of exams. Passing the second (‘provincial’) provided a significant chance of eventual appointment to office as well as the opportunity to take the third level of exam (‘metropolitan’). Passing the third level was a near guarantee of official appointment. … It may have occurred to you that Imperial China is not the only society whose elite members are expected to qualify for high-status positions by studying for, and passing, exams on subjects having little or nothing to do with the positions they are qualifying for.” (03/14/26)