It is sometimes argued that the rapid industrialization in Japan owed much to the development of modern engineers which was attained by the introduction of western-type educational system into the early stage after Meiji Restoration. However, we have very few researches which support this argument with detailed data and an adequate framework to explain the relationship between economic development and educational system.
This paper tries to explore the rise and development of modern engineers during the period from 1870's to 1920's, basing on the data of the “Survey of the Graduate from Eighteen Techinical Colleges”, which contains about 10, 000 cases and shows their occupational careers and geographical mobility.
This paper adopts the framework of “flow approach” of technical manpower. This is a comprehensive approach which is comprised of five levels: the policy making, the development of educational agents, recruitment to employment market, utilization in industry and government, and geographical mobility.
