The Birth of Taihoku Higher School

In 1922, Taihoku Higher School established its general studies program, initially borrowing some school buildings of First Taihoku Prefectural Secondary School (now Taipei Municipal Chien Kuo High School). In 1925, the school established its advanced studies program and in 1926, moved to its new campus in Koteicho district (Guting) (now the Main Campus of NTNU).

Taihoku Higher School had a general studies program and an advanced studies program. The general studies program admitted Taiwanese and Japanese elementary school graduates, who would then advance directly to the advanced studies program after four years of study. The advanced studies program was a three-year program that admitted students who had completed the general studies program, as well as middle school graduates selected through an entrance exam. The advanced studies program was divided into humanities and science tracks, and further split into Group A and Group B according to students’ choice of primary foreign language. Group A comprised students who studied English as their primary foreign language and German as their secondary foreign language. Group B included those who studied German as their primary foreign language and English as their secondary foreign language. Each week, pupils spent over 20 hours studying German, English, and Japanese, enabling students of Taihoku Higher School to establish a strong language foundation during their years of study.

The admission exam for Taihoku Higher School was considered to be “the greatest challenge in pursuing higher education in Taiwan.” Each year, the general studies program only admitted 40 Japanese and Taiwanese students combined. The number of Taiwanese students admitted each year never exceeded six and averaged less than four. The advanced studies program admitted 160 students each year (including the 40 students advancing directly from the general studies program). The average number of Taiwanese students admitted each year never reached 30, which is why the exam could be described as “the narrowest of narrow gates.” Graduates of the advanced studies program were granted admission to Taihoku Imperial University (now National Taiwan University) without the need to take the entrance exam. Many graduates, however, chose The University of Tokyo and Kyoto University in Japan as their first choice for further education instead.

Since 1925, Taihoku Higher School became the premier institution for cultivating Taiwan’s elites, replacing the Governor-General’s Japanese Language School and Medical School, which served such function in the earlier half of Japanese rule. These elites would go on to become a major fountainhead of leadership in Taiwanese society.