New Southbound Policy Portal

Mandarin Training Center run by National Taiwan Normal University in Taipei City is the oldest and most reputable facility of its kind in the country. (Staff photos/Chen Mei-ling)
 

Taiwan is a top-flight destination for global students seeking to study Mandarin on the back of the country’s advanced programs, government-sponsored initiatives and welcoming environment.

Case in point is Jackie Wong from Australia, who recently completed two years at the Mandarin Training Center run by National Taiwan Normal University in Taipei City.

As someone of ethnic Chinese descent, it is culturally important to reconnect with Mandarin, Wong said. It is a blessing to study in Taiwan, where there are high-quality courses, a safe living environment, convenient transportation and fabulous food, he added.
 

Social events such as karaoke with host family members enable international students studying Mandarin in Taiwan to put their language skills to test.
 

Founded in 1956, MTC is the oldest and largest facility of its kind in terms of courses offerings and enrollments. Around 3,000 students from some 70 countries attend the center annually, with online courses available since 2013.

Well-regarded programs are also offered by the Chinese Language Division launched in 1999 by the Language Center of Taipei-based National Taiwan University, the country’s top tertiary education institution.

According to Sung Li-may, director of NTU’s Language Center, the Taiwan Huayu Bilingual Exchanges of Selected Talent Program implemented by the Ministry of Education last year has greatly assisted local universities in promoting Chinese language education in Australia, New Zealand, the U.S. and Europe.
 

The CL Division at Taipei-based National Taiwan University is one of more than 60 such facilities in the country.
 

To date, 18 institutions including NTU, NTNU and National Dong Hwa University based in the eastern county of Hualien are approved to participate, Sung said.

Chu Chia-wen, director of the Chinese Language Center at NDHU, said funding initiatives such as the MOE’s Huayu Enrichment Scholarship and U.S. government-sponsored Fulbright Program are playing a pivotal role in attracting talent from around the globe to her university and significantly bolstering campus internationalization.

Fulbright Scholarship recipient Steven Bernstein, 23, from the U.S. is participating in a year-long intensive course at CLC, after which he will begin a two-year master’s program conducted entirely in Chinese at NDHU’s College of Indigenous Studies.

According to Bernstein, he decided to learn Mandarin because of its importance in the global arena, and has studied at numerous locations throughout Taiwan and in China.
 

Mandarin learning centers around Taiwan offer study materials covering a broad spectrum of areas of interest for international students.
 

Studying Chinese in Taiwan is a joy because it is a beautiful and democratic country with freedom of speech and very welcoming people, Bernstein said. Outside of the classroom, NDHU is a terrific place to practice and make local friends, including those from various indigenous groups, he added.

Sung is equally bullish on Taiwan’s standing as a global hub of Mandarin learning. Teaching is a soft power tool with tremendous potential to expand Taiwan’s international exposure and influence, she said.

Taiwan’s rise in this regard is also accelerating the internationalization of local universities and promoting multicultural understanding, Sung said. This is key to building a truly globalized world, she added. (E) (By Kelly Her)

(This article is adapted from Linguistic Links in the March/April Issue 2022 of Taiwan Review. The Taiwan Review archives dating to 1951 are available online.)