University Graduates
The establishment of a stable national school system did much to advance Japan economically approaching the turn of the century. Many credit the education system with turning out a class of motivated entrepreneurs and scholars who had the skills demanded by Japan’s emerging industrial society.[1] Graduates of the government’s engineering college, for example, were highly sought by private firms to manage milling, mining, shipbuilding, and railroading operations.[2] While status still played a role in determining a child’s education, companies were quickly hiring men out of every social class.[3] The establishment of an academic track into public vocational schools also helped to increase the opportunities of those in lower socioeconomic classes, signifying that while the education system had transitioned to a more nationalism-based approach, the egalitarian approach of the 1870s still played a part, however small.
[1] McClain, 264-265.
[2] Duus, Modern Japan, 161.
[3] Duus, 196.
[1] McClain, 264-265.
[2] Duus, Modern Japan, 161.
[3] Duus, 196.