It was thought that shosei (students who were given room and board in exchange for performing domestic duties) were taught by sho hakase (professors of calligraphy) but despite the fact that there were regulations regarding shosei in education laws, there were no regulations regarding the fixed number of shosei written within the shikiinryo (law which stipulates duties of the ministries) which fixed number of students, and they are thought to have been few in number (an entry in "Shoku Nihongi" (Chronicle of Japan Continued) for December 758 contains an article stating raw silk thread was awarded to shosei by Emperor Junnin, so it was not the case that there were not any shosei at all.)
書博士が書生を教えることとされていたが、学令には書生に関する規定はあるものの、学生定員を定めた職員令には書生の定員規定が書かれておらず、若干名であったと考えられている（『続日本紀』天平宝字2年11月甲午条に淳仁天皇から書生に生糸が授けられたとする記事があり、全くいなかった訳ではない）。