Taiwan scholarship programs for Filipino students up for grabs

MANILA, Philippines — The Taipei Economic and Cultural Office (TECO) in the Philippines will open several scholarship programs for qualified Filipino students who wish to pursue their studies  in Taiwan.

The scholarship programs will cover students of bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees as well as those who want to learn Mandarin Chinese language.

TECO said its office will start accepting applications for the following programs starting February 1, 2020:

1. Ministry of Education (MOE) Scholarship: Grants a 4-year scholarship for undergraduate studies, a 2-year scholarship for Master’s, and a grant of up to 4 years for Doctoral Degree. The MOE will shoulder up to 40,000 NTD (new Taiwan dollar) each semester for the corresponding tuition and miscellaneous expenses. The remaining costs will be shouldered by the scholarship recipient. An additional 15,000 NTD will be given to recipients undertaking university undergraduate studies, 20, 000 NTD for those pursuing their Master’s and Ph.D. as the monthly stipend. The application period is from February 1 to April 30, 2020.

Website: https://edu.law.moe.gov.tw/EngLawContent.aspx? Type=E&id=250

2. Huayu (Mandarin) Enrichment Scholarship: Allows applicants to choose to pursue either intensive Mandarin courses (2 months or 3 months) or up to 12 months Mandarin courses, subject to TECO’s approval. The grant provides a monthly stipend of 25,000 NTD to cover all the expenses (tuition, miscellaneous, etc.) The application is from February 1 to March 31, 2020.

Website: https://edu.law.moe.gov.tw/EngLawContent.aspx?Type=E&id=70

3. International Cooperation and Development Fund (ICDF): The grant covers the full tuition fee, living expenses, economy class airfare tickets, and textbook costs. Scholars pursuing Master’s will receive a monthly stipend of 15, 000 NTD and 17, 000 NTD for those pursuing Doctoral degrees.  The application is from January 1 to March 15, 2020.

Website: https://www.icdf.org.tw/ct.asp?xItem=12505&CtNode=30316&mp=2

TECO said an applicant can only apply for one scholarship program and must first process his or her university admission to their preferred university in Taiwan.

Further, the office reminded applicants that those currently enrolled in another program in Taiwan are not eligible.

Applicants are also advised to comply and submit necessary requirements which will undergo review. Scholarship guidelines and additional requirements prescribed by TECO in the Philippines can be found at its official website.

TECO said the opening of the scholarship programs came after the positive response from Filipino students in the previous years of the programs’ implementation.

“Taiwanese share the same qualities as their Filipino neighbors and Taiwan provides a very affordable living environment for those staying there. Taiwan also possesses some of the world-renowned professors and high-class university facilities worldwide,” TECO said.

“Not only is Taiwan considered to be a melting pot of different cultures, but also it possesses a high-quality living standard suitable to all its international students,” it added.

For more information on the universities and programs available in Taiwan, as well as some featured universities by the Foundation for International Cooperation in Higher Education (FICHET), the public may visit the “Study in Taiwan” website.

GSG