Exemplary Universities of Science and Technology Delegation Visits the UK -Ministry of Education Republic of China (Taiwan)

Exemplary Universities of Science and Technology Delegation Visits the UK

Date: 2015-10-23

Exemplary Universities of Science and Technology Delegation Visits the UK

The Taiwan Exemplary Universities of Science and Technology Delegation, a group of 32 high-ranking officials (comprising 12 presidents, a vice-president, deans of International Affairs, and Deans of Research and Development) from 18 universities of science and technology in Taiwan, travelled to the UK at the end of September, 2015. The purpose of their study trip was to learn more about how vocational training in the UK is served by cooperation between universities and industry, and to explore potential models for interaction and long-term cooperation between the higher education sector in Taiwan and the higher education sector in the UK.

Between September 24 and 29, the group visited Birmingham City University, the University of Manchester, Brunel University, the Education and Training Foundation and the University of Brighton. Dr Liu Chih-Kung, Taiwan’s Representative in the UK, hosted a welcome banquet for the delegation on September 28, arranged by the Education Division of the Taipei Representative Office in the UK.

The delegation participated in a UK-Taiwan University-Industry Cooperation and Strategic Alliance Forum hosted by the British Council, at the Royal Society in London on September 30. The Forum, open to representatives from universities throughout the UK, discussed developments in professional training and industry-academia cooperation in higher education in the UK and in Taiwan, to foster a greater understanding of the mechanisms of university–industry cooperation. The delegation was very interested in university–industry collaborative models and projects that can be established and built upon in the future. The participants also identified opportunities for forging collaborations and partnerships between individual institutions, and on a larger scale, forging a university–industry strategic alliance between the UK and Taiwan.

Members of the delegation will provide details of the knowledge acquired during their UK visit to vocational and technological schools, colleges, and universities in Taiwan. The ideas generated and views exchanged at the UK-Taiwan University-Industry Cooperation and Strategic Alliance Forum and other meetings will benefit promotion of industry-academia cooperation, and Taiwan’s international profile in this vital sector has been further raised.

Photo: The Taiwan Exemplary Universities of Science and Technology Delegation, led by Professor Chao Min-Hsun, President of the National Chin-Yi University of Technology at the UK-Taiwan University-Industry Cooperation and Strategic Alliance Forum hosted by the British Council in London.