Education Opportunities in Taiwan Showcased at BeSt 2025: Austria’s Largest Educational Fair
Austria's largest educational fair, BeSt, took place in Vienna from March 6 to March 9, 2025. This year was the 40th anniversary of the BeSt fair, an exciting milestone in its history, and it was celebrated with a move to a larger venue—Hall C at the Messe Wien Exhibition and Congress Center. Having this new, larger location was met with enthusiasm from exhibitors and attendees alike and the fair drew 55,000 visitors wanting to explore opportunities for work, study, and further education.
As in previous years, the Education Division of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Austria proudly represented Taiwan at the BeSt fair and showcased a wide variety of educational opportunities in Taiwan. These included Mandarin Chinese language courses, scholarships for language and degree studies, short-term summer programs, and research, the Taiwan Experience Education Program, and information about Taiwan’s prestigious universities. Many visitors expressed interest in Taiwan as a study destination and they were keen to learn more about various possibilities to study abroad in Taiwan and explore its cultural and academic offerings, and a number of students expressed interest in applying for programs there.
Prof. Liu Suan-Yung 劉玄詠, Taiwan’s Representative in Austria, and Head of Mission at the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Austria, and Dr. Elisa Hsiang-Yueh Wang 王湘月, Director of the Education Division there, both spent some time at the booth and introduced visitors to the art of Chinese calligraphy, as well as talking about Taiwan’s educational programs. The opportunity to try calligraphy firsthand was a big hit that attracted many visitors to stop by. In addition, the booth offered giveaways, including calligraphy sets and environmentally friendly tote bags, which were also very well-received.
Dr. Horst Hundegger, from the Austrian Ministry for Education, Science, and Research, who is responsible for organizing BeSt each year, also visited the Taiwan booth and expressed his continuing support for its promotion of Taiwan’s academic world. BeSt’s celebration of its 40th anniversary in its new venue that was able to accommodate more people was very successful. We are proud to have been part of this significant milestone and we look forward to continuing to promote Taiwan as a top destination for international students in the years to come.
