The afternoon address was given by Frank Chang, Senior Administrative Secretary of the National Chengchi University Office of International Cooperation, and Chin-Te Huang, Administrative Assistant at the National Pingtung University of Science and Technology Office of International Affairs. Mr. Chang proposed three key approaches for optimizing services for overseas students, including increasing human resources for university international affairs offices, optimizing organizational structures and operational practices, and promoting horizontal collaboration among departments and agencies. He noted that one of the top tasks facing the NCCU International Affairs Office is in assisting various university departments to better understand the needs of international students, improve campus-wide bilingualism, and find resources to implement needed improvements. Mr. Huang reviewed methods for prioritizing and evaluating various types of urgent situations, illustrated with practical case histories. He encouraged international affairs personnel to familiarize themselves with procedures for handling various stypes of events and situations, thereby improving the efficiency of inter-unit communication and optimizing the marshalling and distribution of needed resources. He also emphasized the importance of taking a holistic, all-campus approach to promoting horizontal communication between offices and departments. The subsequent Q&A emphasized that responsibility for serving the overseas student community is not assigned to a single administrative unit, but rather requires the active cooperation and division of labor between multiple offices, thus allowing schools to fully realize their international potential.


The third and final address was presented by Prof. Chun-Liang Yeh, Principal Investigator of the Ministry of Education’s Network for International Student Advisors (NISA). Professor Yeh introduced the four core NISA programs in detail, including their information exchange platform, personnel training, joint visits with overseas students from central authorities, and consulting services for overseas students. He also announced the imminent launch of the NISA overseas student service resource clearinghouse, which will help overseas students more quickly and easily locate and contact relevant agencies and offices for effective assistance. Professor Yeh further discussed the host family services NISA will begin providing next year, providing overseas students with a unique experience while studying in Taiwan. He closed by expressing his hope to build ever more effective cooperation with the international affairs personnel at Taiwan’s colleges and universities, and to work together to improve the effectiveness of existing guidance systems for overseas students, thereby attracting more outstanding students from all over the world to study in Taiwan.


FICHET CEO Dr. Tiffany Hui-Kuang Yu closed the seminar with sincere thanks to all the attending schools for their input and participation. She noted that the seminar had helped highlight the challenges facing Taiwan’s colleges and universities in serving overseas and local students, and also the critical role played by international affairs personnel at each university. Moving forwards, she encouraged attendees to focus on the shared goal of caring for all students and equipping them with the skills and knowledge needed for their future lives, and pledged FICHET’s continued support to providing crucial training and resources for higher education in Taiwan.