The Embassy of Taiwan in Belize is offering full scholarships to Belizeans hoping to pursue undergraduate and graduate studies in Taiwan for the 2014 academic year.
Speaking at a briefing held this morning at the Chateau Caribbean Hotel, Ambassador David Wu encouraged Belizeans to accept the challenge and apply for scholarships to study at colleges which teach in Mandarin—not just those which teach in English.
The bulk of Belizean students who are accepted to study in Taiwan attend universities which teach in English, but Ambassador Wu noted that last year, two Belizean students started learning Mandarin from his wife before leaving for Taiwan and within the third week, they were already beginning to communicate in Mandarin. Now, he said, he communicates via Facebook with those students, who have now learned the language and are doing well in their program.
The training opportunities for Belizeans who study at universities which teach in English is more limited, since scholarships are only available for about 30 of the 160 universities in Taiwan.
John Chang, First Secretary at the Embassy of Taiwan in Belize, encouraged students to seek out training programs outside the business option, since hundreds of people may apply and the chance of getting accepted to pursue a degree of that nature is slimmer than the chance of studying a field such as Information and Communication Technology (ICT).
Applicants are considered on the basis of not just their GPA, which should be 3.0 or higher; but their work experience and potential for impacting community development are also considered.
According to Chang, 232 Belizeans have received scholarships to study in Taiwan since 2002. However, very few PhD candidates take advantage of the program.
Ambassador Wu said that there are currently an estimated 78,000 foreign students studying in Taiwan, and their aim is to increase that number to 100,000 by 2016.
“You should see this as a great opportunity to improve yourself,” said Jacqueline Ifield, president of the Belize Taiwan ICDF Alumni Association.
Ifield noted that there are two types of scholarships offered; one set is offered through the Taiwan Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the other through the International Cooperation and Development Fund (ICDF). She said about 100 Belizean students are waiting in Taiwan to befriend the successful applicants.
Ambassador Wu said that the development of a country relies on education. He said that Taiwan—a largely mountainous country of 23 million people who live on 10,000 square kilometers of the land (about half the size of Belize), was able to develop through their work ethic – studying hard, working longer hours and competing in the marketplace.
More information is available online at http://www.taiwanembassy.org/BZ. Information is available on both scholarship opportunities: the Taiwan ICDF Scholarship Program 2014 and the Taiwan Scholarship Program 2014. The information sheets provided list the available universities, eligibility requirements and documents required for the application process. They differ depending on which scholarship program the applicant wants to pursue.
Applicants must also separately undergo the process of applying to one Taiwan university which offers their major of interest, in addition to applying for the scholarship program.
Those who aren’t successful this year are also free to apply again when the next batch of scholarships are offered in 2015.