I’ve always heard these were used to fill bureaucratic positions during Chinese history, and that they occasionally allowed for some movement between social classes. But what I don’t know is what the tests consisted of.
Were they specific to certain positions, or we’re they general tests similar to an SAT or an ASVAB? I imagine math would be a topic, but what else would be asked?
The tests were general, and consisted of essay questions. Some of the questions were about general ethics, but many were specifically government-oriented. For example,
Discuss: Pei Du presented (the idea) that the prime minister should be able to discuss plans with sages and advisers in his own house. (At Pei’s time every discussion needed to be done at court before the emperor)
Math and science were not covered, until the very late Qing exams, when China was attempting to modernise, and teach modern (Western) science.
See
and
for some discussion and more examples (including some examples from the Korean civil service exams), and also links to earlier discussion.