More effort needed to welcome foreign students

At a hearing held last week in the Legislative Yuan, lawmakers were presented with evidence and statistics showing that Taiwan is not fulfilling its potential as a destination for foreign students.

The number of foreign students enrolled here, including those in degree-level, exchange, and Chinese language study programs, rose from just 119 in 1960 to surpass 17,500 in 2007, the last year for which full statistics are available.

But this figure could be much, much higher if more efforts by government and individual schools addressed core factors influencing foreign students' decisions about where to study.

The tremendous benefits of having more foreign students enrolled in local schools are obvious, starting first and foremost with the daily people-to-people exchanges that occur inside and outside the classroom. Interaction with foreign classmates helps local students learn cultural and religious tolerance, overcome racism and provincialism, and perhaps most importantly, teaches them how to think differently and take different approaches to tackle problems and challenges.

Coming to Taiwan affords foreign students the opportunity to learn Chinese and make friends in a truly vibrant and democratic society.

The foreign students also build ties to their friends in Taiwan, boosting Taiwan's connections with the outside world and making Taiwan more of a fundamental part of international society.

Bringing in more foreign students, especially from Southeast Asia, can also help our smaller colleges combat the serious problem of fewer local students. Combined with admitting more students from mainland China, this should help overcome current enrollment problems and start capitalizing on Taiwan's many competitive advantages.

At last week's legislative hearing, National Taiwan University political science professor Chang Ya-chung said the government needs to consider what types of assets Taiwan has that can attract foreign students. According to results of a survey recently conducted by the non-profit World Leadership Education Foundation, 60 percent of foreign students who responded said they came here because they had received a scholarship.

Other factors cited in the survey leading the foreign students to choose Taiwan included that “Taiwan is a good place to learn Mandarin Chinese” and that “Taiwan has a good living environment.”

It is clear to see that the government's efforts to recruit foreign students have been largely limited to providing financial scholarships. While scholarships are good and should continue, more efforts should be made to provide affordable housing and meals to foreign students. More importantly, the government should organize a dedicated office that would oversee guidance counseling to potential students, directing them into schools and programs that meet their objectives.

The study of Chinese language is one area where Taiwan enjoys a clear advantage.

Besides the widespread use of traditional Chinese characters, Taiwan enjoys a free society, with academic freedom, where virtually no topic is off-limits.

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