Studying in Taiwan - applications now open | Fili’s World

7 Mar, 2008 in Studies, Taiwan by Fili

Studying in Taiwan - applications now open

Although studying for a degree in Taiwan is a constant cross-cultural academic challenge for myself and the international students I study with, I think Taiwan has great potential and is generally heading in a positive direction. For those among you considering to do a degree in Taiwan, this is probably the right time to go look into things as most application deadlines are about to end.

Since I received a few emails with questions about studying in Taiwan, I’ll just point out that this blog includes some posts with background information about the topic that might help in making a decision.

(Disclaimer - I pass the information as is. Since coming here to do a full degree is usually a serious decision - I can’t say whether I support such a decision or not. I recommend reading as much as possible and talking to as many people as possible before making such a decision)

Check out the following:

INCKU, the student portal for international students in NCKU, is a good place to look for some 3rd party information about NCKU in English : “INCKU : An online community and directory for NCKU and Tainan“.

And something a bit less formal :

Here are some of the latest shots of NCKU I took at the beginning of this semester from the new NCKU ISAD-OIA office at the 8th floor of Yun-Ping building, if you’re still wondering what NCKU looks like :

Here’s a recent letter from the NCKU International Affairs VP :

March 3, 2008
To Whom It May Concern,

With the proclaimed aim of globalization and internationalization in academic institutions, higher education in Taiwan is reverberated with efforts to be to connected with the world. To raise our international profile, National Cheng Kung University (NCKU) is currently promoting the recruitment of international students and improving the bilingual environment of the Campus. By doing so, NCKU hopes to expand the global vision and develop cross-cultural interactions for students and faculty in the University.
The application deadline is only a month away (April 9,2008), and we hope that current students can assist in spreading the news along creatively through methods such as mails, blogs, emails, or by phone to all of your foreign friends.
“2008 NCKU Application of Admission for International Students” is now available (http://www.ncku.edu.tw/~ooia/eng/ ). It is most appreciated if you could assist in passing along this information.

Thank you very much for your help.
Yours sincerely,
Huey-Jen Jenny Su, ScD
Vice-President for International Affairs
National Cheng Kung University (NCKU)

Good luck in your academic quest. Good luck to Taiwan with bringing in good quality international students and improving the academic standards here.

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14 Responses so far | Have Your Say!

Viktor Brech | March 7th, 2008 at 7:49 am #

Once again, you are providing a stellar service Fili!Your blog is increasingly turning into my favourite resource for all things Taiwanese (after my girlfriend, that is). Next time I visit the island, I should invite you for a drink Best wishes, Viktor Brech
fiLi | March 7th, 2008 at 8:40 am #

Thanks. That’s good to hear, I’m glad it’s helpful.
Would be happy to meet with you when you and your GF are here again…
stella | March 9th, 2008 at 9:41 pm #

Fili,
Here’s the info:
Thailand Massage
No 152 Sialin Road (Haian Road turns into Sialin).
Phone: 06-2914997
Opened from 12pm to 2 am
I think you have to call and make an appointment.

Enjoy.
David on Formosa » Links 10 March 2008 | March 10th, 2008 at 7:58 am #

[...] FiLi has advice for anyone wanting to study in Taiwan. [...]
ying | March 20th, 2008 at 11:08 pm #

hi, nice blog
I’m study in Tainan, Taiwan. But not NCKU, not Taiwanese.
Your blog’s article very helpful for foriegners thank you man, keep bloggin’
fiLi | March 21st, 2008 at 11:27 am #

Ying - thanks, that’s nice to hear.
Where are you studying at? would you mind sharing some of your experiences in English with us?
thanhnga | April 18th, 2008 at 12:09 am #

I want to look for the scholarship to study Master in Taiwan. How can I apply? Please, help me!
fiLi | April 21st, 2008 at 9:02 pm #

thanhnya - I believe you’ll find all the information you need in the links above. Just take the time to follow into them and read them.
Natalie | April 23rd, 2008 at 10:38 pm #

Do you happen to know if there are any scholarship given to students who wish to study Chinese in Taiwan or in China?
Stupidly enough, I didn’t apply for the Huji-Beida scholarship and now I’m trying to find another way to get to China next year…
(or later, if I have to work day and night to sponsor my studies…)
If you can give me some directions I’ll be soo happy
please answer me via e-mail, if you can. My address is: anahatalie@gmail.com.

谢谢！
Joanna | May 24th, 2008 at 7:28 pm #

This is a great post that will help many perspective students who wish to study in Taiwan. Last year it was very difficult to get my application ready for NTNU in Taipei and I also almost missed out on applying for a DPU scholarship due to lack of information- which was very frustrating as it would not of taken the so called “service” people I contacted ten seconds to have kept me in the loop.

Keep up with the good work and good luck with the PhD! Are you also teaching?
fiLi | May 24th, 2008 at 9:27 pm #

Natalie - China, I wouldn’t know, but in Taiwan, after you study for a semester, attend all classes and have good grades, you can take the test and apply for the Taiwan scholarship which would give you between 25-30,000NT$ a month (around 900US$). There’s no guarantee that you’ll get it, but there’s a good chance if you do your job well. Taiwan’s really helping out international students with endless funds thrown into the various universities. Just make sure you study with a university.

As for where, NCKU-Tainan, where I’m at, has a relatively good Chinese school and cost of living here is very cheap compared to the big cities of
China and Taiwan, although the city is bigger than Jerusalem/Tel-Aviv. It’s what some foreigners call “The Real Taiwan”. If you’re into Chinese culture, I
would dare say there’s no place to better see Chinese culture than here (I’m not sure you’ll find it in China).

If you have more specific questions - let me know.
Good luck.
fiLi | May 24th, 2008 at 9:33 pm #

Joanna - thanks, that’s nice to hear.

I’m on the Taiwan scholarship, so I can’t take up any work, which at first I thought would be okay, but now I know the Taiwan scholarship is barely enough to sustain a degree student, not to mention a person approaching his 30s studying for a PhD.
There’s this other issue with me not being a native speaker, and although schools would happily take me in, I can’t bare to think that the poor Taiwanese kids would grow up to have my English accent.

I hope we can somehow find the way to share some more information between universities and PhD students on life here. Following your blog for a while now, I’d say the little that you write about your degree is probably of the only things out there about the topic in English.
marigel | August 1st, 2008 at 11:26 pm #

hi, thank you for the information. im still clueless though. would you happen to know if there are programs that find host families for foreign students. i wanna find a good scholarship in taiwan but i dunno where to start…
fiLi | August 2nd, 2008 at 12:37 am #

marigel - still clueless with all those links? what ever you’re looking for just web search it or ask something specific. Currently, there is no host families program that I know of, but you can try the Buddy Program with Youth Travel Taiwan. Some interesting stuff there.

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