Those schools of foreign languages were positioned as institutes for training of people who would conduct some activities in foreign countries such as diplomatic activities, trading or missionary work, and what characterized those schools was that they emphasized education of minor languages such as Chinese, Russian, Spanish, Portuguese, Malay and Indian languages other than English, French, and German, the essential academic subjects for those who intend to enter Imperial universities from senior high schools (old education system).
これらの外国語学校は外交・貿易・布教など海外活動実務者の養成機関として位置づけられ、旧制高等学校-帝国大学進学者にとって必須の教養であった英語・フランス語・ドイツ語のみならず、中国語・ロシア語・スペイン語・ポルトガル語・マレー語・印度諸言語など、よりマイナーな語学の教育を重視していたという点に特徴がある。