Dropouts in the last academic year constituted a record-high 13.38 percent of all university students in Taiwan, the Ministry of Education said.
Of the nation’s 1.24 million university students in the last academic year, 166,562 decided to stop pursuing a university degree temporarily or permanently, ministry data showed.
While Taiwan has seen a steady number of university dropouts over the past several years, the annual dropout rate has been increasing due to a declining number of total students caused by the nation’s falling birthrate, Department of Higher Education Director-General Chu Chun-chang (朱俊彰) said on Monday.
The rates differ between universities, but generally private universities have higher dropout rates than public schools, while night schools have higher rates than day schools, Chu said.
Of the 166,562 dropouts in the last academic year, about 77,000 left temporarily, while those who left permanently cited reasons including job needs (about 19,000), a lack of interest in their major (about 11,000), poor grades (about 5,500) and financial difficulties (about 3,700), he said.
Sickness, compulsory military service, childcare and pregnancy were other reasons, he added.
The ministry is to launch measures allowing students to take more interdepartmental courses to cater to different learning needs, as well as provide scholarships for those with financial difficulties, Chu said.
The Joint Board of College Recruitment Commission said that a new curriculum in the 12-year national education program and a revamped university admissions system have helped match students with their fields of interest.
National Chung Hsing University professor Wu Tung-hsing (武東星) called on universities to draft more flexible course regulations for first-year students.
Universities allowing students to dabble in different academic fields without requiring them to extend their education by an additional year or two could benefit those who find themselves uninterested in their major, Wu said.
Taiwan has received more than US$70 million in royalties as of the end of last year from developing the F-16V jet as countries worldwide purchase or upgrade to this popular model, government and military officials said on Saturday. Taiwan funded the development of the F-16V jet and ended up the sole investor as other countries withdrew from the program. Now the F-16V is increasingly popular and countries must pay Taiwan a percentage in royalties when they purchase new F-16V aircraft or upgrade older F-16 models. The next five years are expected to be the peak for these royalties, with Taiwan potentially earning
POSITIVE DEVELOPMENT: Japan and the US are expected to hold in-depth discussions on Taiwan-related issues during the meeting next month, Japanese sources said The holding of a Japan-US leaders’ meeting ahead of US President Donald Trump’s visit to China is positive news for Taiwan, former Japan-Taiwan Exchange Association representative Hiroyasu Izumi said yesterday. After the Liberal Democratic Party’s landslide victory in Japan’s House of Representatives election, Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi is scheduled to visit the US next month, where she is to meet with Trump ahead of the US president’s planned visit to China from March 31 to April 2 for a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平). Japan and the US are expected to hold in-depth discussions on Taiwan-related issues during the
‘LIKE-MINDED PARTNER’: Tako van Popta said it would be inappropriate to delay signing the deal with Taiwan because of China, adding he would promote the issue Canadian senators have stressed Taiwan’s importance for international trade and expressed enthusiasm for ensuring the Taiwan-Canada trade cooperation framework agreement is implemented this year. Representative to Canada Harry Tseng (曾厚仁) in an interview with the Central News Agency (CNA) said he was increasingly uneasy about Ottawa’s delays in signing the agreement, especially as Ottawa has warmed toward Beijing. There are “no negotiations left. Not only [is it] initialed, we have three versions of the text ready: English, French and Mandarin,” Tseng said. “That tells you how close we are to the final signature.” Tseng said that he hoped Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney
STAY IN YOUR LANE: As the US and Israel attack Iran, the ministry has warned China not to overstep by including Taiwanese citizens in its evacuation orders The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) yesterday rebuked a statement by China’s embassy in Israel that it would evacuate Taiwanese holders of Chinese travel documents from Israel amid the latter’s escalating conflict with Iran. Tensions have risen across the Middle East in the wake of US and Israeli airstrikes on Iran beginning Saturday. China subsequently issued an evacuation notice for its citizens. In a news release, the Chinese embassy in Israel said holders of “Taiwan compatriot permits (台胞證)” issued to Taiwanese nationals by Chinese authorities for travel to China — could register for evacuation to Egypt. In Taipei, the ministry yesterday said Taiwan
RSS