Class of 1912: Getting Into Vanderbilt, Then & Now

Image Courtesy of Vanderbilt University Special Collections & University Archives

Today's application process requires a large amount of paperwork. Hopeful applicants have to turn in an application form, ACT or SAT test scores, a personal essay, teacher recommendations, and high school transcripts. Applicants for the Class of 1912 had fewer application requirements. All candidates for admission had to "be of good moral character and not less than sixteen years of age", and they had to pass the entrance exam.

On Wednesday, May 13, 1908, candidates for admission to the Class of 1912 living in or around Nashville assembled at Vanderbilt for the first of four days of examinations in a variety of subjects. The exam schedule was grueling with testing beginning at 8 a.m. and continuing until 6 p.m. The subject exams available below are the exact exams that candidates sat for between May 13 - 16, 1908. How hard can these exams be?

Requirements for Admission 

Languages

English

French

German

Greek

Latin

Lecture Theater, Furman Hall, 1909

Image Courtesy of Vanderbilt University Special Collections & University Archives

History & Geography

American History

English History

Greek & Roman History

Physical Geography

Mathematics & Science 

Chemistry 

Physics

Physiology