TCU’s Emphasis on Students’ Professionalism and Good Character Attracts Many International Students Including Vietnamese Students to Come to TCU

Written by: Chia-Yi Lee
Translated by: Steve J. Lin

One hundred and eleven international freshmen came to TCU this semester, including two Vietnamese students who each received a Taiwan Scholarship. Nguyen Thi Hong Nhi loves education and enjoys helping others, so she chose the Department of Oriental Languages and Literature. She would like to take education-related courses in the Department of Child Development and Family Studies, and the Department of Human Development and Psychology. Besides this, she will learn Mandarin Chinese here.

From March 10-20 this year, the Director of the Office of International Affairs Dr. Hwan-Wun Liu, accompanied his colleagues to attend the Taiwan Higher Education Exhibition in Vietnam. Vu Que Anh said that she had a comfortable life in Vietnam, yet she always wanted to get out of her comfort zone, so she desired to study overseas. She had gotten a good impression from Taiwanese living in Vietnam, and was very happy to talk to TCU’s faculty members at the Taiwan Higher Education Exhibition. Thus, she decided to come to Taiwan. She selected Social Work, and plans to go back to Vietnam after completing the undergraduate program, to help the underprivileged in Vietnam. She arrived in Taiwan on August 30, felt comfortable in the local weather, which was not as hot as her hometown’s, and wishes to enjoy her studies in Taiwan.

Before coming to Taiwan, Nguyen Thi Hong Nhi studied Chinese at the Vietnam National University of Hanoi for one year, but she decided to discontinue her studies in Vietnam and come to TCU, instead. Nguyen Thi Hong Nhi mentioned that Vietnam has a high demand for those who have good English and Chinese skills, for translation and interpretation projects. She loves education, wishes to learn psychology and child development at TCU, and plans to dedicate herself to education in Vietnam. Both China and Taiwan offer the programs she loves, yet she chose Taiwan. She likes Taiwan’s learning environment, freedom to use Facebook, and the convenience to communicate with her family and friends living elsewhere.

The Ministry of Education provides the Taiwan Scholarship, which exempts students’ tuition and a portion of their fees, and further provides living allowances, to encourage Vietnamese students living north of the City of Huế to do their undergraduate or graduate studies in Taiwan. The students will gain their professional skills and knowledge while studying in Taiwan, and Vietnam and Taiwan can enhance their collaborative efforts. This year, only 22 out of more than 500 Vietnamese applicants were able to receive the Taiwan Scholarship, and apparently these two TCU freshmen are quite outstanding.

These International freshmen are from many parts of the world, such as the US, Korea, Japan, Malaysia, Indonesia, Mongolia, Malawi, Macau, Hong Kong, Vietnam, etc. Amazingly, 22 international freshmen chose to major in Communication Studies. The Office of the International Affairs arranged orientation sessions for these freshmen, for them to know the curriculum offered by the International College, how to acquire Taiwan’s health insurance, how to apply for an Alien Resident Certificate, and what kind of college life they might anticipate.