Renegade, I did a lot of reading on the Paris (and other) medical schools about two or three years ago and one of the things that really stood out for me is that the ATTITUDE of universities hasn't change one iota in 600 years.
The different medical schools were vying for attention (and for good students), were snobbish about their reputations, were belly-aching about academic standards, and there was political disagreement and infighting amongst administrators and professors.
It was amazing to read it. The way we approach knowledge has changed (it's more scientific than it was then) and the basic curriculum has been updated, but the attitudes of people and how they interacted with each other doesn't seem to have changed at all!
Another thing that was very similar to university education today is that students often chose a different university for their undergraduate degrees than for their doctorates. They frequently traveled long distances to go to "the right school".
One thing that differs significantly is that graduates sought patronage rather than "jobs" (I'm sure they took jobs when they could find them, but society was based on monarchies at the time and kings came and went and often changed their minds about who they liked and who they didn't, so professionals seeking work often had to go wherever someone was willing to take them for a few months or years). Setting up a business was different from now. Now anyone can apply for a business license. In those days guilds, kings, and circles of nobility had power of a kind that's hard to imagine if you grew up in a democracy. They even dictated what you could wear and used the apprentice system to keep the younger generation out of the powerful part of the workforce for as long as possible.
The different medical schools were vying for attention (and for good students), were snobbish about their reputations, were belly-aching about academic standards, and there was political disagreement and infighting amongst administrators and professors.
It was amazing to read it. The way we approach knowledge has changed (it's more scientific than it was then) and the basic curriculum has been updated, but the attitudes of people and how they interacted with each other doesn't seem to have changed at all!
Another thing that was very similar to university education today is that students often chose a different university for their undergraduate degrees than for their doctorates. They frequently traveled long distances to go to "the right school".
One thing that differs significantly is that graduates sought patronage rather than "jobs" (I'm sure they took jobs when they could find them, but society was based on monarchies at the time and kings came and went and often changed their minds about who they liked and who they didn't, so professionals seeking work often had to go wherever someone was willing to take them for a few months or years). Setting up a business was different from now. Now anyone can apply for a business license. In those days guilds, kings, and circles of nobility had power of a kind that's hard to imagine if you grew up in a democracy. They even dictated what you could wear and used the apprentice system to keep the younger generation out of the powerful part of the workforce for as long as possible.