10 ETH ENTRANCE EXAMINATION mich von selbst versteht, noch ziemlich naiv und unvollkommen. Wenn Du das Zeug gar nicht liest, nehme ich Dirs durchaus nicht übel Du mußt es aber doch zum mindesten als einen schüchternen Versuch anerkennen, die von meinen beiden lieben Eltern geerbte Schreibfaulheit zu bekämpfen.--- Wie Du schon wissen wirst soll ich jetzt auf das Polytechnikum nach Zürich kommen. Die Sache stößt aber auf bedeutende Schwierigkeiten, da ich dazu eigentlich zwei Jahre mindestens älter sein sollte.[3] Im nächsten Brief schrei- ben wir Dir, was aus der Sache wird. Innige Grüße der lieben Tante und Deinen herzigen Kinderchens[4] von Deinem Albert. ALS (Mme. Suzanne Koch, Brussels). Einstein added "1894 oder 95. A. Einstein (Datum 1950 nachgeholt)" at the top of the letter. [1] Dated by the reference to Einstein's first attempt to enter the ETH (see the following letter). [2] The preceding document. [3] ETH regulations specified eighteen as the admission age, but allowed for exceptions. See the following editorial note. [4] Koch's wife Mathilde (1868-1927) and children Paul (b. 1890), Suzanne (b. 1892), and Raymond (1893-1930). ETH ENTRANCE EXAMINATION AND AARGAU KANTONSSCHULE Einstein arrived in Zurich from Italy in the fall of 1895, seeking to enroll in the engineering section of the ETH.[1] He lacked a secondary-school leaving certificate (Maturitätszeugnis) and was two years under the regular admission age of eighteen.[2] With the aid of Gustav Maier, a family friend, he received permission from ETH Director Albin Herzog (1852-1909) to take the entrance examination required of applicants without the certificate.[3] The examination, which began on 8 October,[4] consisted of two parts: one testing general knowledge, the other testing specialized scientific knowledge.[5] The general [1] See Einstein 1955, p. 145. See also MWE, this volume, pp. lxiv-lxv. [2] Article 1 of the ETH Regulativ 1881 lists the entrance requirements. [3] See Doc. 7. ETH Regulativ 1881 provides for exceptions to the age and credential re- quirements. A certificate from his Munich Gymnasium mathematics teacher praising his "mathematical knowledge and abilities" and recommending him for matriculation at a university may have been helpful in getting permission for him to take the entrance ex- amination (see Kayser 1930, pp. 42-43). [4] See ETH Programm 1895b, p. [3]. The re- sults were announced on 14 October (ibid.). [5] See ETH Regulativ 1881, articles 4 and 12. The Examination Commission consisted of the president and at least one other member of the Federal School Council, the director and the division heads of the ETH, and a group of faculty examiners chosen by the School Council (ibid., article 7).