SDG 1.3.5
SDG 1.3.5 Low or lower-middle income countries student support
One of the world's toughest challenges today is eradicating poverty, and that challenge is an indispensable part of sustainable development. NCUE not only actively subsidizes students from low-income households to ensure upward social mobility and increase their chances of developing a bright future, but also attaches great importance to the poverty-eradication measures for students from low-income or middle-low-income countries. The following projects help students from low- or lower-middle-income countries pursue their studies in Taiwan:
1. NCUE formulates relevant plans, scholarships, and bursaries.
NCUE has formulated and continues to implement scholarships and bursaries for economically disadvantaged students from lower-middle-income countries (e.g., Indonesia, India, Vietnam, Thailand, Pakistan, Nepal, Eswatini, etc.). The financial aid includes the following:
(1) Grants for Overseas Taiwanese Students in Financial Need: Providing support for overseas Taiwanese students from underprivileged backgrounds who are dedicated to their studies (Figure 1).
(2) Graduate School Scholarship for Outstanding Overseas Taiwanese Students: Encouraging outstanding overseas Taiwanese students to return to NCUE for graduate studies (Figure 2).
(3) Foreign Students Scholarship: Attracting outstanding foreign students to enroll in degree programs at NCUE and encouraging foreign students on campus (Figure 3).
(4) Guidelines for Research Scholarship for Excellent Doctoral Students: Encouraging outstanding and research-capable doctoral students (Figure 4).
(5) The Ministry of Education's TEEP (Taiwan Experience Education Program): Attracting more outstanding foreign youth to intern and study in Taiwan (Figure 5).
(6) Tuition and Miscellaneous Fee Reductions for Overseas Compatriot Students: Providing subsidies for overseas Taiwanese students from underprivileged backgrounds who are dedicated to their studies to complete their education (Figure 6).
(7) INTENSE Program: Through a pre-enrollment corporate matching mechanism, this program recruits promising international students to study in Taiwan. The government provides scholarships, while partner enterprises provide living allowances and internship allowances. Upon graduation, students remain in Taiwan to work for the partnering company (Figure 7).
2. NCUE grants subsidies as it implements the plans continuously.
In 2025, NCUE provided financial assistance to 402 students from low-income or lower-middle-income countries, with subsidies totaling NT$17,737,248. Related statistical data is shown in Table 1 and Table 2. Furthermore, to enhance the internationalization of Taiwan's higher education and provide concrete support for international students from low-income or lower-middle-income countries in their studies and career development in Taiwan, NCUE has been implementing the "Pilot Program of Professional Employment Guidance for International Students in Taiwan" of Ministry of Education since 2024, aiming to help international students smoothly transition into the Taiwanese workplace, enhance their employability, and promote their economic independence. The program primarily serves international students from countries such as Indonesia, Malaysia, Vietnam, and the Philippines, with special attention given to students with relatively limited economic resources, reducing the barriers they face in language, cultural adaptation, and access to employment information through free and diverse career support resources.
The program integrates career guidance resources both on and off campus, offering free Chinese language learning opportunities, career counseling, résumé reviews, mock interviews, enterprise visits, company briefing sessions, and job matching services to help international students enhance the competencies required in the workplace and understand Taiwan's industry needs and employment environment. At the same time, NCUE connects with government employment resources such as the Ministry of Labor and Taiwan Jobs Websites, with dedicated bilingual staff providing one-on-one career guidance to help students clarify their career direction, prepare job application materials, and enhance their competitiveness in the job market.
In addition, NCUE has actively expanded industry-academia collaboration opportunities, establishing talent cultivation partnerships with enterprises through the Ministry of Education's "INTENSE Program," helping international students gain access to more diverse learning and career development opportunities. In 2025, NCUE successfully matched one international student with the INTENSE Program, who received a scholarship of NT$240,000 over two years from a partnering enterprise, easing the student's financial burden during their studies. Through enterprise collaboration, talent cultivation, and job matching mechanisms, students are helped to gain an early understanding of industry needs, enhancing their readiness to enter the workforce in the future.
In 2025, the program organized a total of 35 sessions, including 13 career lectures, résumé review sessions, mock interviews, 10 company briefing sessions, 1 legal awareness session, 1 job fair, and 3 briefing/meet-and-greet sessions, with a cumulative total of 612 participants, and provided over 100 one-on-one career counseling sessions. According to graduate tracking results, 30 international graduates have remained in Taiwan for employment and 16 for further studies, with the majority of beneficiary students coming from Southeast Asia, South Asia, and other lower-middle-income countries.
Through free career guidance, language learning support, enterprise collaboration, and connections to employment resources, NCUE helps international students enhance their human capital and career development capabilities, reduce employment barriers caused by language, information, and economic factors, and increase their future employment and economic independence opportunities, concretely fulfilling the spirit of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal SDG 1 "No Poverty." (Figure 8-13)
| Projects | Content | Number of Grantees | Grant Amount (NTD) | Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grants for Overseas Compatriot Students in Financial Need | For overseas Taiwanese and foreign students with proof of financial hardship, recipients receive a monthly subsidy of NTD$3,000. | 59 | 1,026,000 | Indonesia, Macau, Hong Kong, Malaysia |
| 55 (Excluding students from Hong Kong and Macau) | 948,000 | |||
| Outstanding Student Scholarship | Includes the Academic and Conduct Excellence Scholarship and the Outstanding Achievement Scholarship. | 10 | 102,000 | Malaysia, Hong Kong, Macau |
| 7 (Excluding students from Hong Kong and Macau) | 70,000 | |||
| Graduate School Scholarship for Outstanding Overseas Compatriot Students | Awarded to students with outstanding academic research performance. | 10 | 600,000 | Malaysia, Macau, Hong Kong |
| 8 (Excluding students from Hong Kong and Macau) | 480,000 | |||
| Foreign Students Scholarship | Recipients are exempted from tuition, miscellaneous fees, and accommodation fees for one academic year. | 88 | 5,370,640 | India, Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia, Pakistan, Thailand |
| NCUE Tuition and Miscellaneous Fee Reductions for Overseas Compatriot Students | Recipients receive a one-third reduction in tuition and miscellaneous fees for both the fall and spring semesters. | 41 | 310,665 | Malaysia, Hong Kong, Macau, Indonesia |
| 31 (Excluding students from Hong Kong and Macau) | 226,187 | |||
| Installment Payment of Tuition and Miscellaneous Fees | Overseas Taiwanese and foreign students with proof of financial hardship may pay tuition in up to 3 installments. | 22 | 794,756 | Malaysia, Vietnam, Indonesia |
| MOE's Taiwan Experience Education Program (TEEP@Asia Plus) | Scholarships are provided to students from New Southbound Policy countries participating in the program, covering accommodation in Taiwan, airfare, living expenses, and insurance, for a maximum period of 6 months. | 70 | 7,569,000 | India, Indonesia, Vietnam, Thailand, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Philippines |
| INTENSE Program | The government provides scholarships, while partnering enterprises provide living allowances and internship allowances; upon graduation, students are employed by the partnering enterprise. | 1 | 240,000 | Indonesia |
| Total | - | 402 | 17,737,248 | - |
| No. | Date | Type | Activity Name | Number of Participants |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2025/02/19 | Briefing/Meet-and-Greet Session | Student Briefing Session (First Semester) | 10 |
| 2 | 2025/02/21 | Career Lecture/Résumé Review/Mock Interview | Changhua County Government 2025 Labor Standards Act and Employment Service Act Awareness Session | 1 |
| 3 | 2025/03/04 | Company Briefing Session | FINE BLANKING & TOOL CO., LTD. Company Briefing Session | 43 |
| 4 | 2025/03/05 | Career Lecture/Résumé Review/Mock Interview | Résumé Review, Mock Interview | 17 |
| 5 | 2025/03/05 | Career Lecture/Résumé Review/Mock Interview | Résumé Review (for Siliconware Precision Industries Co., Ltd.), Mock Interview | 5 |
| 6 | 2025/03/06 | Company Briefing Session | GSK CORPORATION Company Briefing Session | 60 |
| 7 | 2025/03/07 | Company Briefing Session | CHIN FONG MACHINE INDUSTRIAL CO., LTD. Company Briefing Session | 38 |
| 8 | 2025/03/11 | Company Briefing Session | GMT GLOBAL INC. Company Briefing Session | 21 |
| 9 | 2025/03/12 | Company Briefing Session | E-LEAD ELECTRONIC CO., LTD. Company Briefing Session | 22 |
| 10 | 2025/03/14 | Company Briefing Session | Siliconware Precision Industries Co., Ltd. Company Briefing Session | 42 |
| 11 | 2025/03/20 | Career Lecture/Résumé Review/Mock Interview | FINE BLANKING & TOOL CO., LTD. Interview | 3 |
| 12 | 2025/03/21 | Enterprise Visit | CHIN FONG MACHINE INDUSTRIAL CO., LTD. Enterprise Visit | 11 |
| 13 | 2025/03/27 | Career Lecture/Résumé Review/Mock Interview | Career Lecture - Envisioning Your Future Self, Résumé Review, Mock Interview | 5 |
| 14 | 2025/03/28 | Career Lecture/Résumé Review/Mock Interview | Career Development Lecture (2): Résumé Writing and Interview Skills, Résumé Review, Mock Interview | 8 |
| 15 | 2025/03/28 | Enterprise Visit | SAKYA Industries Corporation Enterprise Visit | 10 |
| 16 | 2025/05/02 | Career Lecture/Résumé Review/Mock Interview | Résumé Review and Mock Interview | 5 |
| 17 | 2025/05/12 | Career Lecture/Résumé Review/Mock Interview | 2024 Academic Year Overseas and Foreign Students Graduation Career Lecture - Post-Graduation Internship and Employment Briefing Session in Taiwan | 18 |
| 18 | 2025/06/24 | Enterprise Visit | The Garden of Hope Foundation Taichung Branch Enterprise Visit | 7 |
| 19 | 2025/09/05 | Briefing/Meet-and-Greet Session | New Student Meet-and-Greet (Chinese Session) | 51 |
| 20 | 2025/09/10 | Briefing/Meet-and-Greet Session | New Student Meet-and-Greet (English Session) | 26 |
| 21 | 202509/11 | Enterprise Visit | CHANG YANG MATERIAL CORP. Enterprise Visit | 5 |
| 22 | 2025/09/26 | Career Lecture/Résumé Review/Mock Interview | Career Exploration Lecture | 16 |
| 23 | 2025/10/03 | Career Lecture/Résumé Review/Mock Interview | Career Exploration Card Workshop | 11 |
| 24 | 2025/10/23 | Company Briefing Session | KURA SUSHI ASIA CO., LTD. Company Briefing Session | 43 |
| 25 | 2025/11/06 | Company Briefing Session | Taiwan Change Formula Association Company Briefing Session | 22 |
| 26 | 2025/11/07 | Career Lecture/Résumé Review/Mock Interview | Career Lecture, Résumé Review | 8 |
| 27 | 2025/11/10 | Career Lecture/Résumé Review/Mock Interview | Career Lecture, Mock Interview | 5 |
| 28 | 2025/11/14 | Career Lecture/Résumé Review/Mock Interview | Career Lecture, Résumé Review | 7 |
| 29 | 2025/11/19 | Company Briefing Session | Uni-President Enterprises Corp. Company Briefing Session | 15 |
| 30 | 2025/11/19 | Company Briefing Session | CHANG YANG MATERIAL CORP. Company Briefing Session | 21 |
| 31 | 2025/12/05 | Job Fair | Central Taiwan Overseas and Foreign Students Job Fair | 14 |
| 32 | 2025/12/11 | Career Lecture/Résumé Review/Mock Interview | Career Lecture, Résumé Review | 6 |
| 33 | 2025/12/12 | Enterprise Visit | FINE BLANKING & TOOL CO., LTD. Enterprise Visit | 23 |
| 34 | 2025/12/16 | Enterprise Visit | Wyndham Sun Moon Lake Resort Enterprise Visit | 5 |
| 35 | 2025/12/30 | Enterprise Visit | TA-FA METALLIC INDUSTRIAL CO., LTD. Enterprise Visit | 8 |
| Total | 612 | |||
