FAQ - Exchange Student Program | Before Selection
Yes, but only for the Semester 2 Exchange Students Selection of each academic year.
Yes. However, international students and Overseas Chinese students may not choose to do their exchange at a university in their home country/region. E.g., students of American nationality may not be go on exchange in the US; students of Japanese nationality may not participate in the Japanese Category, nor choose a university in Japan from the General Category. Students with dual nationalities are not subject to such restrictions, but may not apply with the same nationality as the country of their exchange university. For example, if a student with both American and R.O.C. nationality is admitted to a university in the U.S., then they must apply as a Taiwanese student. Bear in mind that some universities in the US may not accept dual nationals with American nationality for their exchange student program.
No, our student exchange program is exclusively for current NTU students.
As long as the period of your exchange is within the time limit for the completion of your degree and you meet all the criteria for the internal screening, you are welcome to apply for our student exchange programs.
Yes. Students that have met graduation requirements before departing for their exchange may graduate immediately upon their return, provided that they complete their student exchange program (all courses, final examinations, assignments, application to leave the university, etc., at their exchange university), log their results, and submit their exchange experience report. Graduate students that have passed their thesis/dissertation defense and have yet to submit their thesis/dissertation are still eligible to participate in a student exchange program. After submitting their thesis/dissertation upon returning to Taiwan, they will be able to graduate immediately.
Yes, students that have extended their school year to the fifth or sixth year will still have to pay NTU’s full tuition fees (including miscellaneous fees) even if they do not enroll in any courses at their exchange university.
Graduate students may only apply to graduate-level student exchange programs, and may not apply to undergraduate-level student exchange programs. Some exchange universities allow graduate students to take undergraduate courses.
This depends on each student’s individual study plan. Students that meet graduate requirements in the semester before their exchange will not need to reserve credits in order to extend their school year. Under such circumstances, the OIA will be responsible for extending the students’ school years; the students will not need to carry out the procedures themselves.
According to NTU’s school regulations Article 19(1) (undergraduate students) and Article 78(1) (graduate students), all students must take at least 2 courses or 6 credits. Students with exceptional circumstances may seek approval from their department chairman before their departure or during their exchange to be exempt from the above restrictions. The OIA is only responsible for the administrative procedures of the student exchange program, and is unable to provide advice on course selection. Students will have to search and explore the various courses provided by each exchange university on their respective websites, or refer to the experiences of former exchange students. Some departments or courses of the exchange universities may not be open to exchange students. Some exchange universities may also have their own restrictions regarding the upper or lower limits of credits and courses to be taken. Students are advised to research these restrictions beforehand. Should the exchange university have higher course selection requirements than NTU, exchange students must adhere to their requirements, and may not request for an exemption.
Our student exchange programs are exclusively between partner universities with ongoing student exchange agreements. NTU Study Abroad is unable to handle programs with universities that do not have an ongoing agreement with NTU. However, if your desired university accepts visiting students, you may study there as a visiting student, and you will be solely responsible for the necessary procedures. Some colleges may have their own college/department-level student exchange programs. Students will have to consult the coordinators of said programs directly for relevant details. The OIA is unable to provide any consultations regarding student exchange programs that are not under ongoing university-level student exchange agreements with NTU.
The quota stated is the shared quota for both undergraduate and graduate students.
A double major or minor may increase a student’s university/department options for their student exchange program. However, they should still apply to a relevant department. Please note, NTU Study Abroad team will not be responsible for the negotiation of students’ admission if they are not accepted due to unmet requirements. During the internal screening, you may choose any department (of the exchange university) of the fields you are majoring in or minoring in. This increases your available options. However, after being assigned an exchange university and being nominated by NTU, your application will still have to be reviewed by the exchange university. They will have full discretion over your admission.
Failed courses will be included in the official transcripts provided by the exchange university, but will not affect the student’s studies at NTU.
The cost of living depends largely on each student’s lifestyle. Please refer to the MOE’s list of subsidies by the government sponsorship for overseas study (available only in Chinese: 教育部公費留學生請領公費項目及支給數額一覽表) or your exchange university’s website for relevant information. Each country/region has its own regulations. Exchange students are typically not allowed to work off-campus. Some universities allow students to work on-campus.
Students need only submit the documents listed on the internal screening guidelines. No other supporting/additional documents are necessary. Students may wait until they pass the screening and are assigned a exchange university to prepare the documents required by their exchange university.
No, unless instructed by the NTU Study Abroad Team or the exchange university.
No. The language proficiency requirements of the exchange universities reflect their minimum expectations towards their incoming exchange students, and must be met in order for students to be eligible to apply. Students whose language proficiency results do not meet the exchange university’s requirements may not apply to that university.
Students will need to submit proof of English language proficiency if it is required during selection or by the exchange university. Taiwanese students do not need to submit any proof of language proficiency if their desired exchange universities are all in Mainland China.
Generally speaking, TOEFL results are valid for 2 years. However, a very small number of exchange universities only accept TOEFL results that are within a year. Please note that the NTU Study Abroad Team will submit students’ applications according to the application timelines of the exchange universities. Therefore, even if your TOEFL results are still valid during the selection, you will have to retake the test if it had expired by the time your application is submitted to the exchange university.
No, students may only submit the required documents.
Fill in your GPA according to the average GPA stated on your Class Rank Certification (Class Rank Certification for This Year).
Starting from Semester 2, 2022/2023AY, you may submit transcripts in English or Chinese.
No. You may not request to reorder your list of preferences after submission. Students are advised to double-check their list before submitting it.
Yes. However, students should take note of their exchange university’s examination schedule. E.g., some European countries hold their final examinations after the semester has ended, so R.O.C. draftees should pay particular attention to these schedules to avoid overstaying.
Yes, the Office of International Affairs is continuously working towards expanding our list of exchange universities.
Students that have taken a leave of absence in the previous academic year should use the academic records of their previous full academic year. For instance, students that took a leave of absence in 2022/2023AY should submit their academic records and class rank for 2020/2021AY.
You may. However, many exchange universities in non-general categories only accept proof of language proficiency of that language group, so you will not be able to choose any of those universities when you indicate your preferences. Furthermore, it is at risk to do so as exchange universities in the non-general categories generally have a limited range of English-taught courses, so you may not have suitable courses to choose from or be rejected.
No. Only TOEFL iBT, IELTS and GEPT are accepted as proofs of English language proficiency.
You will need either TOCFL or HSK of at least level B1. Please note, many exchange universities in the Chinese Category only accept students of R.O.C. (Taiwan) nationality for their exchange student programs.
As proof of language proficiency is one of the required documents for the application, students should submit the official report (printed or as a PDF file) within the application deadline. Students may print the page of their online test results (including the header and the full website URL in the footer) and sign their names on the top-right corner as a temporary substitute. Then, students should submit a photocopy to the NTU Study Abroad Team upon receiving their official report. For further details, please refer to the Selection Guidelines.
No. Students that are unable to obtain language proficiency results before the Selection application deadline may only apply for the Chinese Category (Note: applicable to Taiwanese students only).
If your desired exchange university requires proof of a higher level of language proficiency than you currently have (e.g. TOEFL 100 or above, whereas your score is 83), and you manage to provide proof of sufficient proficiency (e.g. resubmit web results of TOEFL 102) before the listings of preferences begin, you will be able to list that university as one of your preferences.
No. Language proficiency is merely one of the considered aspects within the resume section of your application. High language proficiency does not guarantee a high resume score or final screening score.
The associate vice president for international affairs will be the convener of the Selection Committee, and each category will have its own review committee comprised of NTU professors from different fields. Every application will be reviewed and graded by 3 (three) members of the committee. Excluding the General and Chinese Categories, the selection committee of each category will include a language instructor/professor of the respective language.
No. There are no standard formats for these documents. Students are advised to prepare such documents according to the Selection Guidelines.
Resumes are expected to describe the students’ language proficiencies and their relevant experiences and achievements, which may date back to high school years. Graduate students should include their academic, research, and publication performances, and may also provide a list of their publications as a separate document (no page limit).
Exchange study plans should describe motivations for exchange, a study plan (undergraduates) or a research and study plan (graduates), expected impact towards both the individual and NTU, and other relevant contents.
No, students may only submit required documents.
No, but you may list them out in your CV.
No. Please contact them to obtain their approval and seek their substitute to sign/stamp your documents on their behalf; or you may also obtain their written approval (email/letter) and have your documents stamped by your department office.
No, students from other colleges will not be able to apply unless they are also pursuing a double major or minor from the specified college.
The language proficiency requirements are to ensure that our outgoing exchange students are able to keep up in classes and also to minimize difficulties due to language barriers. It is possible that the host institution had required a lower level of language proficiency in the previous year, but later decided that a higher level of language proficiency was needed for a decent experience.
The concept of the student exchange programs is reciprocity, which indicates academic and cultural interaction between students from the exchange university and NTU should reach a sustainable balance. If there are more outgoing NTU students to an exchange university than incoming students to NTU, it is possible that it will decide not to release any student exchange placements to NTU
Yes. If your desired host institution requires proof of a higher level of language proficiency than you currently have, you may send a higher level of proof of proficiency* before the listings of preferences begin to the NTU Study Abroad Team with your name, Student ID and Selection Application ID, increase your options. This also applies to proof of proficiency in other languages.
*You may submit web results/screenshots to us by attaching your signature, as per requested in the Selection Guidelines.
Starting from Semester 2, 2022/2023AY Exchange Students Selection, exchange universities accepting TOEFL iBT® Home Edition score will be marked "接受 Home Edition" (accepting Home Edition) in the Eligibility (申請資格) section. Please note, the TOEFL iBT® Home Edition is a contingency measure due to COVID-19. As the pandemic eases, it is the applicant's responsibility to check which universities accept TOEFL iBT® Home Edition before indicating preferences.
