A low birth rate and a changing social fabric have toppled education from the list of most-popular courses favored by college-bound students, who are increasingly opting for courses such as tourism and catering, figures released by the Ministry of Education show.
The statistics compared the 50 most-popular departments among students who applied for college last year with those in 2004. It showed that education — which ranked 12th 10 years ago — had fallen out of the top 50 list.
By contrast, logistics, catering, transportation and tourism departments, which students in 2004 generally shunned, saw a surge in interest, with five fields of studies ranking in the top 25.
In particular, restaurant and tourism management departments made it to the top 10, outranking regularly charted fields such as law and economics.
The difference is most likely a result of a change in the nation’s demographics — a low birth rate and a longer life expectancy — ministry officials said, adding that nursing ranked seventh on the list thanks to an aging society and increasing demand for professional caregivers.
The number of part-time teachers waiting to become full-time staff also contributed to the fall in popularity of education, the officials said.
Meanwhile, electrical engineering, mechanics, information and business administration continued to be mainstays, ranking in the top five on both lists.
Given the growing demand for software engineers in the digital age, information management advanced 12 places to take the top spot last year.
Statistics also indicated that students nowadays favor applied language departments, such as the department of applied English, over traditional language departments, while philosophy and political science did not make it to the list, officials said.
Design-related studies also showed a significant rise in popularity, with visual communication ranking 14th.
Commenting on the catering industry’s growing popularity, Howard Plaza Hotel head chef Tsai Ching-nan (蔡清南) said that catering is a very demanding job. Only about one-third of those who major in catering end up pursuing a career in this field, he said.
Dental implant manufacturer HC Bio-S president Cheng Hung-chun (鄭鴻鈞) said that working attitude — not educational background — is what matters the most, adding that he would promote whoever works hard to high-ranking positions.
Online job bank Yes 123 vice president Yang Tsung-bin (楊宗斌) said that a surfeit of bachelor’s and master’s degree holders means that most first-time workers are likely to receive low wages, except for jobs that require high technical expertise, such as doctors.
Yang said college students should develop a competitive edge before graduation if they are to a land a decent job.
For example, they can obtain a certificate in a specialized field, participate in internship programs, or learn a useful skill, he said.
‘DENIAL DEFENSE’: The US would increase its military presence with uncrewed ships, and submarines, while boosting defense in the Indo-Pacific, a Pete Hegseth memo said The US is reorienting its military strategy to focus primarily on deterring a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan, a memo signed by US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth showed. The memo also called on Taiwan to increase its defense spending. The document, known as the “Interim National Defense Strategic Guidance,” was distributed this month and detailed the national defense plans of US President Donald Trump’s administration, an article in the Washington Post said on Saturday. It outlines how the US can prepare for a potential war with China and defend itself from threats in the “near abroad,” including Greenland and the Panama
The High Prosecutors’ Office yesterday withdrew an appeal against the acquittal of a former bank manager 22 years after his death, marking Taiwan’s first instance of prosecutors rendering posthumous justice to a wrongfully convicted defendant. Chu Ching-en (諸慶恩) — formerly a manager at the Taipei branch of BNP Paribas — was in 1999 accused by Weng Mao-chung (翁茂鍾), then-president of Chia Her Industrial Co, of forging a request for a fixed deposit of US$10 million by I-Hwa Industrial Co, a subsidiary of Chia Her, which was used as collateral. Chu was ruled not guilty in the first trial, but was found guilty
A wild live dugong was found in Taiwan for the first time in 88 years, after it was accidentally caught by a fisher’s net on Tuesday in Yilan County’s Fenniaolin (粉鳥林). This is the first sighting of the species in Taiwan since 1937, having already been considered “extinct” in the country and considered as “vulnerable” by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. A fisher surnamed Chen (陳) went to Fenniaolin to collect the fish in his netting, but instead caught a 3m long, 500kg dugong. The fisher released the animal back into the wild, not realizing it was an endangered species at
DEADLOCK: As the commission is unable to forum a quorum to review license renewal applications, the channel operators are not at fault and can air past their license date The National Communications Commission (NCC) yesterday said that the Public Television Service (PTS) and 36 other television and radio broadcasters could continue airing, despite the commission’s inability to meet a quorum to review their license renewal applications. The licenses of PTS and the other channels are set to expire between this month and June. The National Communications Commission Organization Act (國家通訊傳播委員會組織法) stipulates that the commission must meet the mandated quorum of four to hold a valid meeting. The seven-member commission currently has only three commissioners. “We have informed the channel operators of the progress we have made in reviewing their license renewal applications, and
RSS