wfn.org | Taiwan University President Recruits Students Abroad

["pctpress" <pctpress@ms1.hinet.net>]

Taiwan Church News 2747, 18 to 24 October 2004
Reported by Li Hsin-ren.  Translated and Rewritten by David Alexander

It is common for colleges and universities from Canada, Australia the UK and
the USA to recruit students in Taiwan, but Chang Jung Christian University,
affiliated with the Presbyterian Church in Taiwan, has turned the tables.
Last
summer the university's president, C. S. Chen, made a recruiting trip to
North
America touting his school's benefits to overseas Taiwanese there. He hopes
to
attract families settled in the USA and Canada to consider supporting their
young people as students in Taiwan.

According to Dr. Chen, not few overseas Taiwanese face challenges in the
world
of higher education.  For example, tuition and fees at a private college or
university in America can exceed US$30,000 per year. Though Canadian
universities are lower priced, there are not as many of them.  With the
dropout rate in North American colleges at something near 40%, Dr. Chen
promotes his school's better retention average to anxious parents and
students, many of whom have approached him regarding arrangements for study
here.

Overseas Taiwanese returning to "the homeland" for college have certain
advantages. Not only is the tuition cheaper but their experience in use of
the
English language makes them ever more marketable following graduation. Chang
Jung Christian University, according to Dr. Chen, has prepared for an intake
of foreign students by hiring a variety of Christian faculty from several
countries and arranging for transfer of credit from the prospective scholars'
overseas homes.

For More Information: cschen@cju.edu.tw
Taiwan Church News is published weekly in Taiwan's local languages.
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