Executive director Dr. Aaron Chen with Taiwan Scholarship recipient Kane Sinclair.

The Education Division of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Australia hosted Mr. Kane Sinclair, one of the two Australians awarded a Ministry of Education Taiwan Scholarship this year, for an orientation meeting with Dr. Aaron Chen, the director of the Education, on 10 July.

Mr. Sinclair, who’s currently based in Canberra, has been admitted into the Master’s Degree Program in International Affairs at Wenzao Ursuline University of Languages. Mr. Sinclair worked in the Australian Public Service for 16 years. He completed a Bachelor of Arts degree in 2011 and a Master of Public Administration degree in 2017. He left the Australian Public Service in 2018 to spend more time exploring his passions, in particular academic study.

He told Dr. Chen that his interest in learning Chinese language began with his teenage passion for kung fu movies. He’s been learning Chinese for several years now, including periods studying overseas in Mainland China and at four Chinese Language Centers in Taiwan: in Tainan, Taichung, and Kaohsiung, and he’s looking forward to improving his Chinese reading and writing while studying for a second master’s degree. He was particularly drawn to study in Taiwan because it’s a vibrant democracy that allows the freedom of speech that’s essential for independent thought and academic research.

Dr. Aaron Chen outlined the Taiwan Scholarship guidelines and the visa application process and wished Mr. Sinclair well in his future studies.

Mr. Sinclair expressed his appreciation for being awarded a Taiwan Scholarship. He told Dr. Chen that he’s looking forward to studying in Taiwan, and deepening his understanding of Taiwan’s history and culture.