Online Session on the Erasmus Mundus Joint Master Degree Program & Ministry of Education Scholarships
On December 16, 2024, the Education Division of the Taipei Representative Office in the EU and Belgium held an online information session on the Erasmus Mundus Joint Master Degree (EMJMD) program and scholarships offered by Taiwan’s Ministry of Education. Approximately 175 people took part.
The session began with an introduction to the Erasmus+ programme and its two key initiatives: International Credit Mobility (ICM) and the EMJMD program. Erasmus+ is an EU initiative that aims to enhance education, training, youth, and sport in Europe from 2021 until 2027. The programme focuses on social inclusion, green and digital transformation, and the promotion of youth participation in democratic life.
The Erasmus+ programme also offers various educational and research opportunities for students, scholars, and researchers from Taiwan. The ICM programme provides short-term higher education mobility opportunities for students and university staff at various academic levels—bachelor’s degree, master’s degree, and PhD—across multiple disciplines. It also offers student internships and academic staff training programmes. At least 12 universities in Taiwan are currently involved in this initiative, and students can inquire about ICM collaboration with European institutions at their university’s international office.
The EMJMD is a programme in which universities in different European countries collaborate to offer joint master’s degree courses. Each course lasts from one to two years and involves at least three European countries and three or more universities. Students are required to study at two or more of the participating universities which allows them to live and study in various European countries and experience different cultures and languages. Some courses offer scholarships funded by EU institutions. Students must apply for both the programme and a scholarship directly through the participating European universities: the application period runs each year from October to January of the following year.
Education Division personnel then gave details of various scholarships offered by Taiwan’s Ministry of Education. To encourage more young Taiwanese people to study internationally and assist more students to realize their dreams of studying in Europe, the Ministry offers a scholarship that provides an annual amount of USD $16,000 for students who are admitted to the EMJMD, who were not awarded a scholarship by an EU institution but are on a reserve list to possibly receive an EU scholarship. This Ministry scholarship is provided for two years. Applications for these scholarships are accepted in June each year.
Details of the Government Scholarships to Study Abroad (GSSA) and PhD scholarships established in collaboration with some of the world’s top 100 universities were also given, together with details of the Taiwan GPS platform for scholarship recipients to share information.
The session concluded with three recipients of a Ministry of Education EU Scholarship speaking about their experiences of the application process and studying abroad. It is hoped that the session will encourage more Taiwanese students to take advantage of these opportunities and fulfill their dreams of studying in Europe.
