TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – The number of foreign students choosing to study in Taiwan has continued to climb over the years, according to a new report released by the Ministry of Education (MOE).
Foreign students, numbering 126,997 in 2018, accounted for approximately 10 percent of all college and university students studying in Taiwan for the year.
Further, more than a third of that number came from partner nations targeted by the New Southbound Policy, which has shown to be successfully increasing connectivity and cooperation between Taiwan and Southeast Asia, as well as India.
In total, the MOE reports that there were 126,997 foreign students studying in Taiwan in 2018, which is about 5,000 more than the number recorded for 2017.
Over 50,000 foreign students came from Southbound Policy countries, which represent an increase of over 10,000 students coming from the region.
The single greatest source of foreign students was again China, which accounted for 29,960 foreign students. The second highest number of foreign students hailed from Malaysia with 16,717.
Vietnam and Indonesia were the third and fourth largest source of foreign students in 2018, numbering 12,983 and 11,812 students respectively.
Besides China, and Southeast Asia, the greatest source of foreign students was Japan with 9,196 students, and the fifth largest source overall.
Among foreign students studying in Taiwan there was an almost even distribution of students enrolled in degree programs (49 percent) versus those enrolled in non-degree programs (51 percent) such as exchange students or those studying at Mandarin training centers.
The top ten countries and their ratio of degree versus non-degree students can be seen below. The full statement from the MOE (in Mandarin) can be found here.
2018 Foreign enrollment in Taiwan Higher Ed. Institutions
