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RR RUEHCN RUEHGH
DE RUEHIN #2056/01 1670533
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 160533Z JUN 06
FM AIT TAIPEI
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 0704
INFO RUEHBJ/AMEMBASSY BEIJING 5319
RUEHKO/AMEMBASSY TOKYO 7776
RUEHGP/AMEMBASSY SINGAPORE 6488
RUEHUL/AMEMBASSY SEOUL 7885
RUEHGH/AMCONSUL SHANGHAI 0203
RUEHCN/AMCONSUL CHENGDU 1299
RUEHSH/AMCONSUL SHENYANG 5260
RUEHGZ/AMCONSUL GUANGZHOU 9386
RUEHHK/AMCONSUL HONG KONG 6530

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 04 TAIPEI 002056 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR AIT/W, EAP/TC, INR/EAP, EAP/PD 
 
FROM AIT KAOHSIUNG BRANCH OFFICE 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PREL SCUL TW
SUBJECT: Southern Taiwan Youth Prepping for Global Business 
Environment 
 
REF:  Taipei 0660 
 
¶1.  Summary: In 2004, Taiwan's Ministry of Education included 
globalization as an important factor in the annual university 
performance evaluation program. Local universities have worked to 
comply by diversifying international exchange programs and 
re-engineering campuses into international learning environments. 
By beefing up English language training, student exchanges and 
intake of foreign exchange students, universities hope to increase 
student competitiveness in the global economy.  However, according 
to recent polling data, a majority of Taiwanese college students 
think that they are less competitive than Chinese students, 
believing that their lack of foreign language skills, professional 
certificates and international experience will jeopardize their job 
opportunities as well as their competitiveness in the global 
business environment.  Southern Taiwan universities and students are 
actively participating in enhanced opportunities to obtain 
international experience, despite serious concerns by academics that 
the effort and resources spent will not yield significant results. 
End Summary. 
 
STEP ONE: INCREASED ENGLISH LANGUAGE TRAINING 
--------------------------------------------- 
 
¶2.  According to National Sun Yat-sen University (NSYSU) Professor 
Jason Huang, the Ministry of Education assesses a university's 
"globalization" ranking by the number of foreign students, foreign 
teachers, and hours of lectures being delivered in the English 
language.  Huang pointed out that "mobility" of professors and 
students is very important to campus internationalization, noting 
that good English language skills facilitate "mobility".  Huang also 
noted that lecturing in English or increasing the hours of English 
language instruction is the first step to campus 
internationalization. 
 
¶3.  In tune with this move toward globalization, National Taiwan 
University of Technology now provides 200 hours of English language 
classes for graduate school students free of charge during summer 
vacations.  National Taiwan University Business Administration 
Institute Professor Lin Hsiu-wei noted that classroom lectures in 
English can improve students' language skills and, more importantly, 
help to attract foreign students to the university.  Lin pointed out 
that the presence of an increasing number of foreign students on 
campus helps expedite campus internationalization, especially in the 
areas of administration and teaching.  Interacting with foreign 
students in and outside class clearly exposes local students to 
foreign mindsets. 
 
STEP TWO:  INCREASED STUDENT EXCHANGE OPPORTUNITIES 
--------------------------------------------- ------- 
 
¶4.  Participating in student exchange programs has been the most 
popular international experience for many Southern Taiwan students, 
especially for those who cannot afford expensive tuitions for higher 
education abroad.  Huang Shi-ping, an NSYSU graduate participating 
in a student exchange program in Holland last year, pointed out 
that, compared with European students, her international vision was 
relatively limited.  Huang said that before joining the exchange 
program, she thought the experience would help with her prospects 
for future employment.  However, she discovered that the most value 
from the program came from the chance for her to experience a 
different culture. 
 
¶5.  Offsite teaching is another option for universities to pursue 
the goal of internationalization. NSYSU started the CAT (Canada, 
Austria and Taiwan) program, which is a pooling of educational 
resources from Canada's Victoria University, Austria's Johannes 
Kepler University at Linz and Taiwan's National Sun Yat-sen 
University.   According to Jason Huang, postgraduate students are 
recruited to participate in this integrated transcontinental 
business administration program with a focus on "doing business in 
the region."  The students attend classes and activities at the 
three participating universities to study business administration 
and economic issues in Asia, Europe and America.  The first-year 
class consists of five Taiwanese, ten Australian, and two Canadian 
students. 
 
¶6.  In addition to offsite teaching, Southern universities use 
overseas internships to cultivate students' competitiveness. 
 
TAIPEI 00002056  002 OF 004 
 
 
National Yunlin University of Technology Business Administration 
Institute started overseas practical training programs in China and 
Vietnam three years ago.  Ke Yi-yun, an MBA degree holder from Yuan 
Chih University, urged students to grab internship opportunities 
abroad to accumulate international experience, which can add value 
to a college diploma.  Ke, born in 1982, obtained her MBA after one 
year in graduate school and then six months on an exchange program 
at Stanford University.  She told AIT/K that the most useful courses 
during her stay at Stanford were language and communication skill 
courses, in which she had hands-on experiences participating in 
academic seminars and business communication, writing a resume, and 
conducting phone marketing and briefing. 
 
STEP THREE: INCREASING THE INTAKE OF FOREIGN STUDENTS 
--------------------------------------------- -------- 
 
¶7.  According to Dr. Kuo Zhih-Wen, Associate Professor of National 
Sun Yat-Sen University's Department of Electrical Engineering and 
member of the pro-independence Southern Taiwan Society, the real 
push behind the resources flooding campuses to promote the 
"globalization standard" is to attract foreign students and 
professors to top level Taiwan universities.  By increasing the 
number of classes taught in English, thus making them accessible to 
foreign students, Kuo claims, Taiwan hopes to move toward getting at 
least one of its universities into the world's list of top 100 
academic institutions. Kuo sees this goal as unattainable in the 
near future. 
 
¶8.  National Kaohsiung University of Applied Science and Technology 
did open an MBA course to a group of Vietnamese students.  However, 
Wenzao Language College Professor Samuel Hong pointed out that 
National Kaohsiung University of Applied Science and Technology has 
not benefited from this course in terms of its globalization ranking 
since those Vietnamese students do not actively interact with local 
students owing to the language barrier. Hong gave an example of a 
successful international exchange program conducted by National 
Pingtung University of Technology in Southern Taiwan, in which 
students are posted to developing countries in Asia and Africa to 
assist in agricultural programs. 
 
¶9.  In February 2006, National Kaohsiung University inaugurated its 
Administration College with an emphasis on cultivating 
managerial-level talent with a global vision to meet the demands of 
newly developed industries in the region, which include the deep 
water harbor, the Tainan Science-based Industrial Park's Luchu Base 
in Kaohsiung County, the Kaohsiung Air Cargo Transport Center, the 
Kaohsiung Warehousing Transshipment Center, and the Kaohsiung 
Multi-functioned Economic and Trade Park.  According to Professor 
Lee Po-chih, the Administration College, comprised of the Applied 
Economics Department, the Asia Pacific Industrial and Business 
Administration Department, the Financial Management Department, the 
Information Management, and the Institute of Economics 
Administration, is designed to cultivate students' global vision and 
ability to integrate academic training within an actual global 
business environment. 
 
CONCERNS FROM POLITICIANS AND ACADEMICS ABOUT STUDENT PERFORMANCE ON 
THE GLOBALIZATION STANDARD 
--------------------------------------------- --------- 
 
¶10.  Taichung Mayor Jason Hu in his recent remarks to local college 
students pointed out that Taiwan students' competitiveness in the 
global environment has declined because of lack of international 
vision and experience.  Hu encouraged Taiwan students to prep 
themselves by improving their knowledge, service, communication, 
health, creativity, and vision to compete with their peers in the 
global environment.  Hu also noted that Taiwan students pay much 
more attention to entertainment and show business news than to 
political, national defense, and economic news. Hu suggested that 
the number of Taiwan students studying abroad has decreased in 
recent years, possibly contributing to lessening competitiveness in 
the global environment.   Hu encouraged Taiwan students to cultivate 
an international vision, enhance English language skills, and 
acquire new knowledge to prep for the global business environment. 
 
¶11.  Wenzao Language College Professor Samuel Hong told AIT/K that 
only top college students are aware of the trend of globalization 
and know how to benefit from it.  Hong noted that the majority of 
local college students do not care about their futures, and 
 
TAIPEI 00002056  003 OF 004 
 
 
certainly have no clear picture of globalization.  Hong pointed out 
that it has become a norm for Taiwan parents to encourage children 
to pursue higher education as far as possible, resulting in 
graduates who choose to go to graduate school even though they do 
not actually enjoy academics.  Hong also noted that going to 
graduate school in Taiwan is much easier than before, since there 
are vacancies in almost every department.  Hong attributed the 
increase in the numbers of universities and graduate schools to 
Taiwan's election culture, in which politicians gain voters' support 
by giving promises of opening new universities in their 
constituencies.   Hong also bemoaned that younger generations in 
Taiwan are spoiled by their parents, who are willing to support 
their children indefinitely.  The younger generation hence, he 
believes, gradually loses its competitiveness in all aspects. 
 
¶12.  Hong said that, based on his teaching experience, postgraduate 
students in Southern Taiwan spend most of their time listening to 
lectures and translating English language textbooks into Chinese, 
rather than receiving training on independent thinking and academic 
seminars.  Hong noted that without independent thinking and the 
ability to analyze and research, Taiwan students will never enhance 
their competitiveness in the global environment.  Hong told AIT/K 
that he selects only elite students for the course he opened on 
globalization issues, noting those students must possess fluent 
English language skills and must display an understanding of and 
willingness to adapt to the realities of globalization. 
 
SURVEY RESULTS ON TAIWAN STUDENTS COMPETITIVENESS AND INCOME LEVELS 
 
--------------------------------------------- ---------- 
 
¶13.  According to a web survey in August 2005, 79.38 percent of 
Taiwan's college students polled said that China's college students 
are more competitive than their peers in Taiwan.  In the same 
survey, over 90 percent of those polled gave a score of 55.4 to this 
year's college graduates; 68.75 percent of those polled said they'd 
rather remain unemployed if they can't find an ideal job, whereas 
59.85 percent of those polled said that the job market will become 
more competitive than ever.  When asked whether they will pursue 
higher education, 82.89 percent of those polled said they will; 
among them, 64.75 percent said they will pursue masters' degrees and 
Ph.D. degrees overseas, while 33.18 percent said they will stay in 
Taiwan for higher education.  When asked about the reason for 
pursuing higher education, 87.94 percent of respondents believe that 
higher education gives them opportunities for faster promotions, 
followed by knowledge (60.6 percent), and personal fulfillment (59.1 
percent).  When asked if a college diploma does not guarantee 
employment, how they will find jobs, 79.3 percent of those polled 
said they will accumulate different working experiences, whereas 
77.89 percent of respondents said they will learn a secondary 
specialty and obtain professional licenses. 
 
¶14.  According to Cheers Magazine on May 2, 2006, Taiwan college 
graduates' starting salary has increased by 1.33 percent since last 
year.  However, the actual increase becomes negative when factoring 
in the inflation rate, which is 2.3 percent this year.  According to 
the survey, the number of Taiwan's office workers who possess a 
bachelor's degree and make a monthly salary of less than NT$25,000 
has increased by 100,000 over the past five years. 
The magazine pointed out that Taiwan society is creating a 
low-income youth group, heavily reliant on parents to maintain its 
living standard, which is expanding by 1 percent each year, as the 
number of low-income youth has increased from 53,000 to 150,000 over 
the past ten years.  The same magazine article indicated that the 
average starting salary for college graduates continues to increase 
in Japan, South Korean and Hong Kong, although those countries have 
suffered from financial turmoil and the SARS outbreak. 
 
¶15.  According to the South Korea Employer Association, the starting 
salary for the country's four-year university graduates is 
NT$62,000, which is more than double that of Taiwan.  The higher 
education population in South Korea constitutes 5.6 percent of its 
total population; this is higher than Taiwan's 5.28 percent and 
Japan's 3.12 percent.  Owing to economic prosperity, the average 
salary increase in South Korea is over 5 percent, which is higher 
than its inflation rate.  In Hong Kong, the unemployment rate has 
dropped from 7.9 percent to 5.2 percent and the starting salary has 
increased by 4 percent since the SARS outbreak three years ago. 
 
 
TAIPEI 00002056  004 OF 004 
 
 
¶16.  National Policy Foundation Researcher Hsu Ming-chu pointed out 
that a majority of professors surveyed by Business Week magazine in 
April this year indicated that the qualifications of Taiwanese 
college students are worse than those of a decade ago and less 
competitive than PRC students.  Hsu criticized Taiwan's educational 
authorities for failing to upgrade traditional curricula and 
teaching methodology as well as to strengthen educational programs 
in the fields of lecturing in English, student exchanges and 
substantial academic cooperation with foreign countries to broaden 
the international vision of college students. 
 
¶17.  Hsu also pointed out that the number of Taiwan students 
studying in the U.S. hit a record low of 11,277 in 2003, while the 
PRC had the world's largest number of students studying in the U.S. 
He concluded that Taiwan has lost its lead in the cross-Strait 
competition to achieve internationalization.  Hsu attributed the 
decrease in the number of Taiwan students studying in the U.S. to an 
increasing number of available openings in local graduate schools, 
which offer direct and easy connections to higher education with 
cheaper tuition for Taiwan students who are not willing to bear the 
hardship and extra financial burden of study abroad.  In addition, 
the new defense technology military service attracted nearly 90 
percent of masters' degree holders in electrical engineering and 
information technology to stay in Taiwan, rather than pursue higher 
education abroad, since Taiwan's hi-tech industries manage to offer 
them good job opportunities and decent salaries as well as millions 
of dollars of stock dividends each year.  Cyber Digital Manager Chen 
Wen-li believes that Taiwan professionals will be replaced in the 
future by PRC professionals, rather than by Japanese or Koreans, in 
international companies. 
 
¶18.  Comment: Compared to their peers in Northern Taiwan, who are 
more closely connected to international cosmopolitan lifestyles, 
Southern Taiwan youth are likely to encounter more obstacles when 
trying to adapt to the shifting priorities in universities toward an 
emphasis on globalization.  This "globalization" standard stands in 
sharp relief to the agenda of local Southern primary, secondary and 
high schools to implement a policy that promotes Taiwanese identity 
through classes emphasizing local language and history (see reftel). 
 These inconsistent educational directions have the potential to add 
to the perceived decline of competitiveness.  Further, since the 
allocation of educational resources dedicated to higher education 
regularly favors tertiary institutions in the north, it is likely 
the competitiveness of college students in Southern Taiwan will fall 
even further behind.  End Comment. 
 
Thiele 
 
Keegan