Juren

Juren (Chinese: 舉人; lit. 'recommended man') was a rank achieved by people who passed the xiangshi (Chinese: 鄉試) exam in the imperial examination system of imperial China. The xiangshi is also known, in English, as the provincial examination. It was a rank higher than the shengyuan rank, but lower than the jinshi rank, which was the highest degree. To achieve the juren rank, candidates, who had to already hold the shengyuan rank, had to pass the provincial qualifying examination, held every three years in the provincial capital. A second, less widespread pathway to gaining the juren rank was through office purchase. Those with the juren rank gained gentry status and experienced social, political and economic privileges accordingly. The juren title was also awarded in the military examination system in imperial China.