National Kaohsiung Marine University and two other schools have agreed to merge, citing the need for a comprehensive marine sciences program.
The merger will lead to the establishment of National Kaohsiung University of Science and Technology (NKUST), from National Kaohsiung Marine University, National Kaohsiung University of Applied Sciences and National Kaohsiung First University of Science and Technology.
Ministry of Education sources said the three universities would begin preparations for the merger next month, with plans to open the new university in February next year.
University administrators said they expect NKUST to have about 28,000 students, which they said would be the largest science and technology school in the nation.
The establishment of the new university would simplify administration, National Federation of Teachers’ Unions director-general Huang Yao-nan (黃耀南) said, but added that the large scope of the university could lead to a loss of certain technical programs.
Huang gave the example of two former vocational colleges that were merged into National Chiayi University, which he said resulted in a weakened agricultural studies program.
Huang also cited a university merger in Pingtung that maintained the quality of the original agricultural programs, saying that a successful merger is possible.
While Kaohsiung’s marine science universities have cooperated on marine biology programs in the past, Huang said he hopes the new university will retain the professionalism of the original institutions.
Taiwan must have an outstanding marine program, given that it is an island nation, National Taiwan Ocean University president Chang Ching-fong (張清風) said.
Chang echoed concerns about mergers’ effects on the quality of studies, and said that the focus should be on cooperation between northern and southern universities that would capture the nation’s marine diversity.
The two main areas of marine sciences are high-end research and effective use of human resources, China University of Science and Technology Aviation Sciences and Management Department dean Lee Mi (李彌) said.
The problem was that some professors had never been on a research ship or had no field training, he said, adding that this affected their ability to train students.
China has made great strides in marine science education in the past few years, Taipei College of Maritime Technology dean Tang Yan-po (唐彥博) said.
One Chinese university received NT$13 billion (US$425 million) in funding for its marine sciences department, Tang said, adding that China has also opened Hainan Island and the islands of Fujian Province’s Futan County to international tourism.
Kaohsiung, once among the world’s thriving ports, has now fallen largely into obscurity in the face of Chinese competition, he said.
Tang said the government should invest more in maritime services and promote tourism through cruise ship port of call visits at Kaohsiung.
“We have to ensure that [marine sciences-related] training does not become watered down. Only that way can the Ministry of Education cross-regional education aims be achieved,” Tang said.
Kaohsiung Mayor Chen Chu (陳菊) has also called for the city to emphasize maritime issues.
Taiwan yesterday condemned the recent increase in Chinese coast guard-escorted fishing vessels operating illegally in waters around the Pratas Islands (Dongsha Islands, 東沙群島) in the South China Sea. Unusually large groupings of Chinese fishing vessels began to appear around the islands on Feb. 15, when at least six motherships and 29 smaller boats were sighted, the Coast Guard Administration (CGA) said in a news release. While CGA vessels were dispatched to expel the Chinese boats, Chinese coast guard ships trespassed into Taiwan’s restricted waters and unsuccessfully attempted to interfere, the CGA said. Due to the provocation, the CGA initiated an operation to increase
A crowd of over 200 people gathered outside the Taipei District Court as two sisters indicted for abusing a 1-year-old boy to death attended a preliminary hearing in the case yesterday afternoon. The crowd held up signs and chanted slogans calling for aggravated penalties in child abuse cases and asking for no bail and “capital punishment.” They also held white flowers in memory of the boy, nicknamed Kai Kai (剴剴), who was allegedly tortured to death by the sisters in December 2023. The boy died four months after being placed in full-time foster care with the
The Shanlan Express (山嵐號), or “Mountain Mist Express,” is scheduled to launch on April 19 as part of the centennial celebration of the inauguration of the Taitung Line. The tourism express train was renovated from the Taiwan Railway Corp’s EMU500 commuter trains. It has four carriages and a seating capacity of 60 passengers. Lion Travel is arranging railway tours for the express service. Several news outlets were invited to experience the pilot tour on the new express train service, which is to operate between Hualien Railway Station and Chihshang (池上) Railway Station in Taitung County. It would also be the first tourism service
The Chinese military has boosted its capability to fight at a high tempo using the element of surprise and new technology, the Ministry of National Defense said in the Quadrennial Defense Review (QDR) published on Monday last week. The ministry highlighted Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) developments showing significant changes in Beijing’s strategy for war on Taiwan. The PLA has made significant headway in building capabilities for all-weather, multi-domain intelligence, surveillance, operational control and a joint air-sea blockade against Taiwan’s lines of communication, it said. The PLA has also improved its capabilities in direct amphibious assault operations aimed at seizing strategically important beaches,
RSS