New Jersey Resident Receives 2021 Taiwan Scholarship
The Ministry of Education Taiwan Scholarship Program was established to encourage outstanding international students to undertake degree studies in Taiwan. Students can apply for the Taiwan Scholarship to undertake a bachelor’s, master’s, or doctoral-level degree. At the same time as developing their future professional skills and becoming global experts in their discipline, the students are becoming familiar with Taiwan’s academic environment, and this helps to promote communication, understanding, and friendship between Taiwan and the international community.
New Jersey resident, Ian Murphy, is one of the recipients of the 2021 Taiwan Scholarships awarded through the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in New York. Ian graduated from Seton Hall University in 2019 with a Bachelor of Science in International Relations and then moved to Taiwan in 2020 to do an internship with the Foreign Commercial Service at the American Institute in Taiwan. The US Foreign Commercial Service works to promote US exports, attract investment, and address trade and market access issues. It does this by working with US and Taiwan companies and engaging with Taiwan’s agencies and during his internship, Ian was exposed to the inner workings of the bilateral US-Taiwan trade relationship, in the semiconductor, aerospace, and healthcare industry sectors.
Ian has visited ten countries during his academic career and found his experiences in Taiwan to be the most educationally rewarding. He applied to study at National Taiwan Normal University for a Global Master’s in Business Administration. When he was asked why he chose this program, Ian said “pursuing this degree at National Taiwan Normal University with the help of the Taiwan Scholarship will greatly expand my academic and professional experiences. Earning a graduate degree from a Taiwanese university will provide me with the skills to work cross-culturally to add value to US–Taiwan political and business relationships. My goal for my expected future contributions to non-profits and international trade is to create situations where both Taiwan and the United States are better off. This scholarship will help me create opportunities which will contribute to the friendship and cooperation between the United States and Taiwan.”
Ian was accepted into the Global MBA program and despite the various challenges posed by Covid-19 pandemic, he is already serving as an educational ambassador, encouraging US students to choose Taiwan as their next educational destination.