TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The Ministry of Education (MOE) on Monday (May 13) said its efforts to retain foreign talent are making progress as it launches a new scholarship that offers NT$440,000 (US$14,158) to skilled students.
Minister of Education Pan Wen-chung (潘文忠) said there are 50 schools in Taiwan offering special programs for students from New Southbound Policy countries under the International Program of Industry-Academia Collaboration (IPIAC), training 20,000 young people, reported Liberty Times. Pan said over the past five years, 4,963 students have graduated from IPIAC, with 3,803 graduates employed in Taiwan, achieving an average employment rate of 77%.
With the end of term approaching, Pan led his team to the Legislative Yuan's Education and Culture Committee on Monday to present a report on the effectiveness of the Taiwan Huayu Bilingual Exchanges of Selected Talent (BEST) program.
Pan said the International Industrial Talents Education Special (Intense) Program will provide eligible students NT$100,000 per year scholarship for up to two years from the National Development Fund. It also includes a living allowance of at least NT$10,000 per month from companies over those two years for a total of NT$440,000, but they are obligated to work in Taiwan for two years after graduation.
The Intense Program will start in August with 2,301 students at 35 schools and 123 classes (102 in STEM fields, six in finance, and 15 in semiconductors). The program will include the participation of 197 companies.
Pan said the MOE has recently been promoting the recruitment of international students, with their number continuing to grow steadily. In the 2023 academic year, there are 116,038 international students including 67,299 degree-seeking students, an increase of 9,971 from the previous academic year.
In addition, there are 71,012 students from New Southbound Policy countries, with the highest numbers coming from Vietnam (16,111), Indonesia (5,110), and Malaysia (2,511).
According to the MOE, the Intense Program integrates government, industry, and university resources to expand the recruitment of International superior industrial talent students. The program will first target students from Vietnam, Indonesia, and the Philippines in 2024.
