TECO Chicago's Education Division Holds a Pre-departure Information Session for 2014 Huayu Scholarship Recipients

Twenty-nine Americans who were awarded an ROC Ministry of Education 2014 Huayu Enrichment Scholarship by TECO-Chicago's the Education Division were invited to attend an information session at TECO-Chicago's office on May 20. This was designed to help smooth their travel preparations and arrival in Taiwan to begin their studies, and it was well attended. Rose Chen, the director of the Education Division, presided over the information session. The benefits and requirements of the Huayu Enrichment Scholarship were all explained in detail, as well as the procedures for applying for visas.

Yang Wen-se, president of the Taiwanese Students Association at the University of Illinois-Chicago then spoke about some practical details of life in Taiwan, such as accommodation, food culture, and the ease of public transit, and the arts too.

Applications for Huayu Enrichment Scholarship may be lodged at the TECO-Chicago Education Division in February and March each year. The applicants must have excellent grades and must be highly motivated to study Mandarin. Any prior experience studying abroad, short-term and long-term educational goals, and recommendation letters are all carefully considered during the selection process.

In recent years, the Education Division has been cooperating closely with the so-called Big Ten universities (actually more than ten major universities in the US Midwest region) and it has offered some scholarships to students on the basis of recommendations by their university. The successful applicants receive funding for a two-month summer term, or for a three-month, six-month, or nine-month study stay in Taiwan during the academic year. The number of scholarships awarded is subject to particular funding quotas for each term.

This year's awardees come from the University of Chicago, Northwestern University, the University of Wisconsin’s Madison and Milwaukee campuses, the University of Minnesota, the University of Michigan, the University of Northern Iowa, Indiana University-Bloomington campus, and Ohio State University.