PETALING JAYA: The Taiwan Education Ministry yesterday awarded 55 Malaysian students with scholarships to pursue full academic degrees and three-month Mandarin courses through its Taiwan Scholarship and Huayu Enrichment scholarship programmes, starting in September.
Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Malaysia representative Anne Hung said Malaysian students have always performed well.
She expressed hope that the recipients will take the opportunity to expand their knowledge and experience during their time in Taiwan so that they can contribute to society, and further bilateral relationships between the two countries.
Hung said Taiwan is one of the best countries to pursue an education because its economic prowess and high-quality human resources are closely related to the quality of its higher education.
“According to the World Competitiveness Yearbook 2022, published by the International Institute for Management Development in Switzerland, Taiwan emerged as the seventh most competitive economy in the world.
“This excellence in our economic competitiveness has caused Taiwan to have an outstanding higher education system, that even provides opportunities for international students to study a wide range of subjects – from the Mandarin language to history, tropical agriculture, forestry, genetic engineering, business, semi-conductors and others.”
Hung said students will experience a vibrant, modern society rooted in one of the world’s most fascinating cultures, and populated by some of the friendliest and most hospitable people in the world.
She noted that some 13,000 Malaysian students are currently in Taiwan pursuing business management, mass communications, art and design, engineering and technology, medicine and public health, due to the high-quality programmes and strong support from the industry and educators.
Scholarship recipient Nuramirah Nordin, 24, a Universiti Malaya graduate who majored in Material Science, said she will be pursuing a Mandarin Language course at the National Taiwan Normal University.
“This scholarship will ease my financial burden as both my parents are retired, and Taiwan Education Ministry will cover my accommodation and tuition fees. I am grateful for the opportunity as I can sharpen my Mandarin skills while I’m there,” she said.
Tay Tiong Guan, 24, said he will be pursuing a degree in Information Application at Tsing Hua University.
“I graduated from Monash University with a bachelor’s degree in Software Engineering. In order to have an in-depth knowledge, I decided to further my studies there.
“Taiwan was one of my first choices. I applied for a scholarship to study there since I visited the country as a child, and I loved the people and the environment,” he added.
Universiti Malaya under- graduates Kaviarasan Veerayah and Sharvin Nallathamby, who are both 23, said they are thankful to the Taiwan government for the scholarship.
They will be attending the Dong Hwa University to pursue a three-month Mandarin course.
“It is a blessing to learn a new language and culture from a country that is known for it. We cannot thank the Taiwanese government enough for providing this opportunity,” said Sharvin.
For more information on scholarships and bursaries offered by universities and colleges in Taiwan, visit www.studyintaiwan.org.