The imperial exam system may be defined as fair play in a man’s world. It was open to all men of letters – in the gender sense – and carried no restrictions as regards to age or family background.

People visit the exam hall in the China Imperial Examination Museum at its opening on Aug 11 in Nanjing, Jiangsu province. [Photo/Xinhua] Ever wonder how ancient Chinese took a "college entrance exam" ...

The ancient imperial exams, on which the Chinese bureaucracy was built, continues to inspire modern talent. The soaring popularity of the nation's civil service exam is a clear indication. Last ...

The Gathering Talents Around the Land: The Imperial Examination Culture of Ancient China exhibition will officially open on December 16, 2025 at the Beijing Confucian Temple and Guozijian museum.

For over 1300 years, anyone who wanted to become a civil servant in imperial China had to pass the same exam, the keju. The gruelling tests were an egalitarian route to officialdom, but critics say ...

Building personnel pools by selecting saints and talents: Different from Athenian democracy, which elected their rotating officials and juridical staff by lottery, the Chinese officials were selected ...

The seventh day of the seventh lunar month is the traditional "Qixi Festival" in Chinese culture. According to folklore, it is also the birthday of Kuixing – the god of examinations. In the ancient ...

In India, the UPSC Civil Services Examination has almost legendary status. It’s a kind of rite of passage for anyone dreaming ...