Entrance Exams and Results Announcement Scenes from Half a Century Ago

Image: Students selling preliminary answer keys

The photo in the center (at the top) shows the scene at Hiyoshi on the day of the exam. Groups of Keio students, such as the newspaper club, are selling model answers. They collaborated with prep schools to have them ready for sale by the time the exam ended. I believe this continued until the late 1970s. Additionally, preliminary reports of the results were sold on campus by these groups. These lists were also posted at clothing stores along Keio Naka-dori and other areas, where people could find out the results early. There must have been far more incoming students back then who had their school uniforms custom-made. For a new student, having a uniform made at the very shop where their examinee number was posted must have been a moment of great pride. Perhaps the shop owners understood that sentiment as well. On the morning of the announcement, the number lists seemed to be handled rather loosely; looking back, it was a simpler, good old era that is hard to believe now. Speaking of the good old days, around 1967 (Showa 42), the announcement boards were handwritten. The total number of successful applicants for all faculties was enormous, yet the examinee numbers were written in a very legible, consistent style. Handwritten announcements ended in 1971. I was in charge of entrance exam operations from the late 70s through the 80s, and there were still senior colleagues who spoke proudly of this craftsmanship. For about ten years after that, we used documents created with a typewriter and enlarged them at a local photo shop.

Recalling the day of the entrance exams, a "gate" used to be set up at the main gate of Mita to prohibit anyone other than authorized personnel from entering the campus. This was because the aftermath of the student protests was still ongoing, and there were concerns about students or others obstructing the exams. However, as things became more peaceful over time, the "gate" was moved back to the entrance of the South School Building in 1985, narrowing the restricted area. Today, it has narrowed even further, with gates placed at the entrance of each individual building where exams are held. In 1979, the Common First-Stage Exam, the predecessor to the National Center Test, began. It was an era of significant change both socially and in the way entrance exams were processed within the university. The Juku developed a new computer system compatible with all faculties, and as a result, the lists of successful applicants could simply be printed and posted as-is. Since then, the announcement methods have evolved; currently, applicants apply online, and results are released on their personal "My Page" on the web, so only the individual can see them. Because there is no longer a physical posting of successful examinee numbers, Mita Hilltop Square is no longer crowded on the day of the announcement. It truly feels like a different world.