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2023.0325

NTNU Forum on Internationalization of Higher Education: Top Universities from America, Europe, and Asia Gathered Together

National Taiwan Normal University held the "NTNU Forum on Internationalization of Higher Education" from March 21st to 22nd, 2023. The forum invited international leaders and academic administrators from five top universities in America, Europe, and Asia, as well as representatives from foreign institutions in Taiwan, to share their internationalization strategies. This is also one of the important actions of NTNU in the new phase of the Ministry of Education's Higher Education SPROUT Project and Bilingual Benchmark University. Through scholars and experts exploring the trends and challenges of higher education internationalization in the globalization era, the forum promotes international exchange and cooperation in higher education and further enhances Taiwan's international competitiveness in higher education.


The two-day forum included three sessions on the first day, focusing on internationalization and international academic exchange in higher education in the United States, Europe, and Taiwan. The second day covered eight internationalization topics, including international strategic partnerships, global academic exchange, online teaching, global alumni networks, international student recruitment strategies, transnational education and internships, all-English teaching, and overseas Chinese language teaching.

Fifteen international speakers from Pennsylvania State University, The University of Texas at Austin, University of Burgundy in France, University of Glasgow in the UK, Sungkyunkwan University in Korea, Fulbright Taiwan, the British Council, Bureau Français de Taipei, and the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) participated in the forum. In addition, the international leaders of National Taiwan University and National Taiwan University of Science and Technology, who are also part of the NTU System, served as moderators for the forum. Nearly 300 guests attended the event, including international leaders and administrative executives from various universities in Taiwan, as well as scholars and experts who are highly interested in internationalization.


The opening ceremony was performed by students from the College of Music, who played a string quintet, including Edward Elgar's "Pomp and Circumstance March", the father of Taiwanese folk song Deng Yu Xian's "Four Seasons Red", and the National Taiwan Normal University anthem as the opening of the forum.


National Taiwan Normal University President Wu Cheng Chih said in his speech that in the past three years, affected by the epidemic, the communication between universities can only be held online but direct communication at a physical forum is the best way to establish relationships with each other. He thanked the international presidents from the five internationally sister schools for traveling to Taiwan to join the forum. 


President Wu also highlighted that the forum was part of NTNU's centennial celebrations, which included discussions on international strategy partners, global academic exchange, online education, global alumni networks, and international student recruitment.


Vice President for International Affairs, Liu Yi De welcomed guests from far away. He believes that the forum has three purposes. Firstly, to strengthen the friendship between sister schools, to share teaching experiences with each other, and to set benchmarks for mutual learning. Vice President Liu said that secondly, it is to celebrate the centenary of the founding of National Taiwan Normal University, especially with the presence of Pennsylvania State University and University of Burgundy, which have had more than 70 years of cooperation experience, as well as University of Glasgow, which signed a new agreement in 2021. The gathering of old friends and new acquaintances in the Centennial Hall makes the forum particularly meaningful. Finally, the design of the forum logo uses the symbol of NTNU's lion and Taiwan landmark "101 building" to symbolize "NTNU moving towards its 101st year" and to hope that NTNU can achieve greater internationalization through this forum.


The Office of International Affairs arranged various activities for the international delegates, including visits to NTNU campus and other universities in Taipei, with the aim of enhancing their understanding of NTNU and Taiwan. NTNU is ranked ninth in the world for education and educational research according to the latest U.S. News & World Report global university rankings. As one of the four bilingual education-focused universities in Taiwan, NTNU hopes to further strengthen relationships with its sister universities and facilitate knowledge-sharing, leading to the celebration of 101 anniversary of NTNU.