Taiwan
5 Master’s Degree Program Awards: Fulbright Graduate Studies Award in Teaching Chinese As a Second Language NEW
Accepted Degree Levels
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Grant PeriodSeptember StartGrant Length12 Months |
Award Type
Fulbright Graduate Degree Grants
- Yes
Award Profile
Fulbright Taiwan awards offer a unique opportunity for American student to pursue a full-time Master’s Degree in Teaching Chinese as a Second Language (TCSL) at one of the FSE’s partner universities including National Chi Nan University located in Nantou County, National Taiwan Normal University located in Taipei City, National Kaohsiung Normal University located in Kaohsiung City, Tunghai University located in Taichung City, Wenzao Ursuline University of Languages located in Kaohsiung City. The program is taught primarily in Mandarin. For detailed information about the TCSL program from each of the above five universities, please visit either the Fulbright Taiwan website or the individual five universities’ own TCSL program websites listed in the section of “Eligible Programs” below.
The graduate program in TCSL is designed for the needs of teachers of Chinese language. It aims to cultivate professionals who have more proficient teaching skills of Chinese language, understand Taiwan culture and cross-cultural communication skills, and are competent to teach Chinese. The TCSL courses cover from Chinese literature, education, linguistics, instructional technology to mass media. During the three years of training, the students will be provided a multicultural academic environment, as well as stimulation in both theories and practicum. Students can gain the latest development in Chinese language education, and develop and challenge current research on Chinese pedagogy and second language acquisition. In addition, the program is for engaging in developing both test and teaching materials for the teaching of Chinese as a second/foreign language. Students can expand their Chinese language capacity and to advance their knowledge about Chinese culture through the Master’s program.
The award is co-sponsored by the above five partner universities separately.
Grant Length
Grant Period
The grant is initially awarded for 12 months; renewal for the second and third year is dependent upon the grantee’s academic success with a minimum GPA of 3.0 (B) on a 4.0 scale for the National Chi Nan University, National Kaohsiung Normal University, Tunghai University, and Wenzao Ursuline University of Languages. The minimum GPA requirement is 3.3 (B+) on a 4.0 scale for National Taiwan Normal University.
Grants begin in September 2025 prior to the FSE Welcome Reception (usually the Friday after Labor Day).
Orientation
The post-arrival orientation will be held usually the Friday after Labor Day.
Candidate Profile
Candidate must have received a Bachelor's degree prior to enrollment and intend to pursue a three-year Master's degree. Strong academic credentials in their area of specialization are expected. A good capacity for studying and living in a cross-cultural setting is necessary. Grantees cannot be accompanied by dependents.
What is life like for Fulbrighters in the host country?
With a thriving economy, buoyed by rapid technological advancement, a healthcare revolution, and a vibrant media landscape, Taiwan boasts top global universities and academic departments equipped with state-of-the-art facilities.
Taiwan features a foreigner-friendly environment with increasing in-bound travel and immigration, thriving international trade, and democratic institutions and freedoms. While Mandarin Chinese is the most widely spoken language, Taiwan citizens are capable in basic English. Taiwan places emphasis on education, with an adult literacy rate over 98%.
There are three types of higher education institutions in Taiwan: private and public universities, junior colleges, and technical institutes. There are about 1.3 million students of higher education attending more than 160 institutions. Taiwan seeks to bolster the quality of instructors in the coming years. Through these efforts, Taiwan believes a comprehensive curriculum will be truly beneficial for students entering the job market.
Taiwan’s health care system is often measured against the world’s best. With its comprehensive medical facilities, convenient clinical visits, quality medical system, friendly service attitude and state-of-the-art-equipment, medical costs are very competitive in comparison with other advanced countries. Taiwan has become a leading choice for overseas medical treatments. Our U.S. grantees are offered Taiwan National Health Insurance during their grant periods after receiving the Taiwan Alien Resident Certificate (ARC). Also, they are exempted from Taiwan visa application fee (US$160) - it also applies to their dependents, and Taiwan Income Tax on the Fulbright stipend. In addition, there are airport pick-up and drop-off services provided.
Taiwan is considered to be a safe country and has high quality of life with great food, comfortable accommodations, extremely convenient transportation (there are metro systems in Taipei, Kaohsiung, Taoyuan, New Taipei, and Taichung), fast internet, and beautiful scenery. The cost of living in Taiwan is relatively low and is a great place to learn Chinese. The weather is nice most of the time throughout the year. Winters are not too cold and summers have lots of sunshine.
The academic year runs from mid-September to late June. The first semester is from September to January; the second semester is from late January or early February to late June (depending on the lunar calendar).
Please visit Taiwan’s Government Portal to learn more about Taiwan, including history, politics/diplomacy, economy, science/technology, and education/culture. Also, for our former U.S. grantees’ reflections (including research, teaching, and reflection of their living in Taiwan), please refer to the Reflection and Research website.
Eligibility
9 Months
- Candidates currently residing in Taiwan (or those who will be living there during the 2024-2025 academic year) will not be considered.
- A candidate who has lived outside the United States for five or more consecutive years in the six-year period preceding the date of application will be ineligible.
- Individuals with dual U.S.-Taiwan citizenship or permanent residency are not eligible.
- Applicants with completed doctorates at the time of the start of the award are not eligible.
- All Fulbright U.S. Student award recipients to Taiwan are required to travel to Taiwan on a J-type visa for academic and cultural exchange programs. Please note that individuals with dual U.S.-Taiwanese citizenship or permanent residency are not eligible to meet these document requirements. It is the responsibility of the applicant to determine whether they have dual citizenship and how it affects their eligibility prior to submitting their application for a Fulbright award.
- Fulbright U.S. Student award recipients who were born in China must have obtained U.S. citizenship for at least 4 years and provide additional documentary evidence to certify that they have resided in the U.S. for a duration of 4 years and above. Meanwhile, they also need to provide the documents sufficient to prove the loss of mainland China citizenship when applying for a visa at the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office (TECO) in the U.S. The Fulbright Program cannot guarantee that they will be granted a J-type visa by the TECO and an Alien Resident Certificate by National Immigration Agency after arriving in Taiwan. All applicants must meet Taiwan’s entry requirements for applications of Taiwan visas. Please directly contact the TECO to get details on the visa application.
Degree Level of Applicant
- Bachelor's
- Master's
- Doctoral
Special Application Instructions
Applicants must select “Fulbright Taiwan TCSL” in the Award Name field of the application.
Foreign Language Proficiency
The applicant’s Chinese proficiency is required of CEFR B1 or its equivalent. Advanced Mandarin study in Taiwan in the first year is required. CEFR B2 is expected at the beginning of the second year.
Applicants selected as semi-finalists will be required to share their Chinese proficiency certificate at CEFR B1 level or its equivalent with the Fulbright Commission in Taiwan. Applicants do not need to include their Chinese Proficiency Test Certificate in the Fulbright U.S. Student application.
Please note: the Chinese proficiency test dates are limited and irregular, so please check the exam tests and schedule your exams as early as possible. Please submit your Chinese proficiency results to Fulbright Taiwan (chinesetestresult@fulbright.org.tw) by February 5, 2025.
Chinese language level should be equivalent to higher intermediate at the time of application. The score reports of the Chinese proficiency test must include both of the oral and reading results which indicate at “intermediate high” for the Mandarin-taught Master’s Degree Program Awards application. The Chinese Proficiency test scores are valid for two years, starting from the day of the exam.
Please see the Chinese Proficiency Test Comparison List as follows: (with required score eligibility)
- TBCL: Taiwan Benchmarks for the Chinese Language (4)
- New HSK: New Hanyu Shuiping Kaoshi (5)
- CEFR: Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (B1)
- ACTFL: American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (Intermediate High)
Fulbright Proposal Types
No
Yes
Affiliation
Letter of acceptance required prior to grant start
No letter of affiliation is required upon application. Candidates must be accepted by both the Fulbright commission in Taiwan and the university program.
Applicants, who apply for the TCSL Scholarship, may apply to up to three of the five universities at the same time. The selected students will be assigned to one of the universities according to the result of the selection process.
Note: To assist in placement, applicants should indicate up to a maximum of 3 universities and rank them in order of preference in the “Statement of Grant Purpose” section. Each university preference is considered in the order applicants have listed them. Applicants will be ranked through the selection processes. The final assignments will be allocated based on the ranking of the selected applicants and their priority order of preferences.
APPLICANTS MUST ALSO BE ACCEPTED BY THE UNIVERSITY. A separate application to the university is required. Applicants not only have to apply to the Fulbright award, but also MUST be accepted by the university. For example, if applicants choose to apply to three universities that they are interested in, applicants must apply separately to their selected universities directly. Please look up and respect the program application deadline for the university program. The online application portal, application period, and application fee for the university program, you may also refer to this page for details.
Once a Fulbright finalist gains admission to the master’s degree program, a copy of the admission letter must be provided to the commission.
Affiliation Fees/Tuition
The grant provides recipients with full tuition support, housing in a student dormitory, round trip airfare, a monthly living allowance, and National Health Insurance as long as the candidate maintains satisfactory academic standards. Tuition waiver for the number of credits required for graduation are granted to graduate students. Students may enroll for additional credits, but they will be responsible for the added tuition and fees.
Please visit the Fulbright Taiwan website for more financial information.
Award Benefits
- A stipend broadly based on the cost of living in the host country. These funds may be used by the grantee to support housing, meals, and incidental costs during the grant period.
- International travel benefits
- Accident & sickness health benefits
- 24/7 mental health support line for urgent and non-urgent situations
- 12 months of non-competitive eligibility (NCE) hiring status within the federal government
Stipend Amount
This is an estimated amount and is subject to change. The financial terms of the grant will be confirmed in the grant document issued after selection.
Total monthly stipend includes:
- Base Stipend: NT$18,000 per month
- Living Allowance: NT$7,000 per month
Note:
- The actual payment amount is based on the above-mentioned Taiwan dollar. The actual payment amount is based on the above-mentioned Taiwan dollar. Currency exchange rates are subject to fluctuation (usually between NT$27 and NT$32 to the US dollar).
- Funds are paid in NTD to a local Taiwan bank account.
One-Time Allowances
This is an estimated amount and is subject to change. The financial terms of the grant will be confirmed in the grant document issued after selection.
- Excess baggage fees
- Settling in allowance
Settling-in allowance and baggage allowance of NT$36,000, upon arrival.
Note:
- The actual payment amount is based on the above-mentioned Taiwan dollar.
- Currency exchange rates are subject to fluctuation (usually between NT$27 and NT$32 to the US dollar).
- The funds will be paid in NTD cash upon arrival. It is paid to help meet some immediate expenses and cover the costs of extra baggage brought to and taken from Taiwan.
Additional Grant Benefits
- Diversity Coordinator on Post/Commission staff
- Health insurance (in addition to ASPE)
- Housing placement
- Mid-year seminar
- Transportation pass
Note:
- A direct round trip economy-class air ticket will be provided for the grantee.
- After receiving the Alien Resident Certificate (ARC) in Taiwan, the premium for our grantees is paid each month by Fulbright Taiwan directly to Taiwan’s Bureau of National Health Insurance during the effective period of their grant.
- Exemption from Taiwan visa application fee (US$160).
- Exemption from Taiwan income tax on the Fulbright stipend.
- Orientation
- Thanksgiving Dinner
- Mid-year Conference
- Farewell Reception
Estimated Cost of Living
Consider using cost of living comparison websites to gain a better understanding of the potential costs in your host country.
Currency: The New Taiwan dollar is the official currency of Taiwan. The currency code is TWD and this is commonly abbreviated as NT$ or NTD$. Cash payment is common in Taiwan though many shops also accept credit cards, Easy Card and iPass. Checks are not normally used in Taiwan for payment of everyday expenses. Most banks offer foreign currency exchange and bank services in NT dollars. Foreigners with an Alien Resident Certificate can open a Taiwanese bank account. The minimum monthly wage is NT$26,400 (US$880) and the average regular monthly income is NT$43,570 (US$1,458) in 2022. The minimum cost of living per month is NT$22,536 (US$751) in 2022. The cost of living is low – as it is really affordable for foreigner to live, travel, and study.
Transportation: There are currently five MRT systems in Taiwan: Taipei, Kaohsiung, Taoyuan, New Taipei and Taichung. Urban train system is inexpensive and efficient - you can get to one side of the city from the other for NT$60 (US$2). Bus fares cost even less for NT$15-25 (US$0.5-0.8). During daytime, the starting amount for a cab in Taipei is NT$70 (US$2.3), and NT$20 (US$0.7) is about a 1-kilometer ride. An Easy Card or iPass can be purchased at all MRT stations and convenience stores. They not only can get through all the public transportation around Taiwan, but also can be used as a payment card in many stores. The Easy Card and iPass cost NT$100 (US$3.3). After you got the card, you can top up as many amounts as you want via machines in the MRT station or the convenience stores.
Rent: The Master’s degree Fulbright award includes housing in a shared dormitory room provided by the university. Fulbright does not provide housing assistance or supplemental funds for grantees who wish to rent off-campus accommodations.
Housing standards in Taiwan are generally quite acceptable, but apartments are usually smaller than you might be used to, especially in big cities like Taipei. Rent varies considerably depending on location, sharing arrangements, and quality of apartment. The majority of our international students in Taipei and Taichung pay between NT$8,000 (US$267) and $16,000 (US$533) per month. Elsewhere, rent is cheaper. Apartments usually come unfurnished, but sometimes the landlord or the previous occupants leave basic furnishings. Air conditioning is common, but central heating is very rare as there is little need for it.
Phone and Internet: Some of the largest mobile providers in Taiwan are Chunghwa Telecom, Taiwan Mobile, FarEasTone, and T Star. Their websites have detailed price plans and the full list of services available to customers. A mobile phone contract will give expats a much more permanent solution to communications in Taiwan, with more services and talk time with monthly bills. Most apartment rentals include cable and internet service.
Food: Taiwan is world-known for its great varieties of cuisine, and the cost is quite affordable. You can easily find local rice, noodle, soup, or dumplings dish for between NT$40 (US$1.6) and NT$100 (US$3.6). A Big Mac, fries, and soda set from McDonald’s costs about NT$180 (US$6). Dinner for two in a good restaurant will cost about NT$1,000 (US$33.3). Supermarkets sell local and imported products at average prices. Finding vegetarian food is not very difficult. The cost of food and drinks is about NT$400-500 (US$13.3-16.7) per day.
Entertainment: Movie tickets cost about NT$250-330 (US$8.7-$11) base on which city you are living. The cost for the Taipei Fine Arts Museum (TFAM), the Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA), or the National Palace Museum are NT$30 (US$1), NT$50 (US$1.7), and NT$350 (US$11.7) admission respectively. Taiwan has many great hiking trails and most of them are free for charge. If you have an Easycard or credit card, you can rent a Ubike in all major cities of Taiwan. The process is very easy and the rate is affordable.
Cost of Medical Care: Grantees are insured by Taiwan’s National Health Insurance program. The health system in Taiwan is extremely advanced, convenient, and affordable. Clinics are readily accessible. Every visit costs about US$6-US$16 (co-pay) and this covers all the bills including medication.
Dependents
Housing Arrangements
The Foundation for Scholarly Exchange (Fulbright Taiwan) will book the grantees in a hotel for the first four nights close to the office. The grantees are offered a one-time-only settling-in allowance.
The host institution will offer grantees a student dormitory at their university in a two-person dorm room.
Fulbright Program Management Contact
Fulbright Commission/U.S. Embassy Website
Eligible Program
- National Chi Nan University - Master’s Degree Program in Teaching Chinese as a Second Language
- National Kaohsiung Normal University - Master’s Degree Program in Teaching Chinese as a Second Language
- National Taiwan Normal University - Master’s Degree Program in Teaching Chinese as a Second Language
- National Tunghai University - Master’s Degree Program in Teaching Chinese as a Second Language
- Wenzao Ursuline University of Languages - Master’s Degree Program in Teaching Chinese as a Second Language
Additional Online Resources
Learn Chinese in Taiwan : https://lmit.edu.tw/lc
List of Universities and Colleges in Taiwan : https://english.moe.gov.tw/cp-21-14441-4EC5E-1.html