Twenty-two public and 29 private universities missed their recruitment target by 14,000 students, despite reporting a record acceptance rate of 98.94 percent, the University Admission Committee said on Friday, underscoring the severity of student shortfalls due to declining birthrates.
The committee, in a report on acceptance rates nationwide, said that 25,297 prospective students took entrance exams this year, 9,272 fewer than last year, as universities sought to recruit 39,350 students, but missed their target by 36.83 percent.
In terms of student majors, foreign-language departments made up more than 62 percent of the departments that were unable to meet their recruitment targets, the committee said.
Photo: Liao Chen-huei, Taipei Times
Committee executive secretary and National Cheng Kung University Department of Education Affairs director Tsai Chun-li (蔡群立) said that the number of people taking the new exams had decreased sharply due to declining birthrates.
This year was the first time by-subject exams were administered in lieu of the previous advanced subjects tests. The by-subject test only considers the scores — up to a maximum of 60 points in each subject — in category A mathematics, history, geography, civics, physics, chemistry and biology.
The by-subject test is another option for students seeking to enter a university, with the other option being the General Scholastic Ability Test, which considers examinees’ scores on four out of five subjects, including general Mandarin; written Mandarin; English; category A or B mathematics, or both; social sciences; and the sciences.
Photo: CNA
The committee said that private universities with established reputations have also been affected by declining enrollment, with Chinese Culture University reporting that it only recruited 257 students, despite having 2,635 available slots.
The Union of Private School Educators and the National Federation of Teachers Unions (NFTU) urged the Ministry of Education to reconsider its policies related to student recruitment.
Union of Private School Educators president Yu Jung-hui (尤榮輝) said that although universities shoulder part of the blame for underestimating the effects of the nation’s declining birthrate, leading to the large discrepancy between actual and expected student numbers, the ministry is also responsible for failing to manage recruitment numbers.
Yu said the ministry should lower the number of students public universities with a low acceptance rate should be allowed to recruit.
With even fewer students expected to enroll in universities in the coming years, the ministry should expedite its plans to close underperforming private schools, NFTU president Hou Chun-liang (侯俊良) said.
Hou said the ministry should work with the public and academics to formulate practical policies regarding the future of Taiwan’s higher-education system.
RETHINK? The defense ministry and Navy Command Headquarters could take over the indigenous submarine project and change its production timeline, a source said Admiral Huang Shu-kuang’s (黃曙光) resignation as head of the Indigenous Submarine Program and as a member of the National Security Council could affect the production of submarines, a source said yesterday. Huang in a statement last night said he had decided to resign due to national security concerns while expressing the hope that it would put a stop to political wrangling that only undermines the advancement of the nation’s defense capabilities. Taiwan People’s Party Legislator Vivian Huang (黃珊珊) yesterday said that the admiral, her older brother, felt it was time for him to step down and that he had completed what he
Taiwan has experienced its most significant improvement in the QS World University Rankings by Subject, data provided on Sunday by international higher education analyst Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) showed. Compared with last year’s edition of the rankings, which measure academic excellence and influence, Taiwanese universities made great improvements in the H Index metric, which evaluates research productivity and its impact, with a notable 30 percent increase overall, QS said. Taiwanese universities also made notable progress in the Citations per Paper metric, which measures the impact of research, achieving a 13 percent increase. Taiwanese universities gained 10 percent in Academic Reputation, but declined 18 percent
CHINA REACTS: The patrol and reconnaissance plane ‘transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,’ the 7th Fleet said, while Taipei said it saw nothing unusual The US 7th Fleet yesterday said that a US Navy P-8A Poseidon flew through the Taiwan Strait, a day after US and Chinese defense heads held their first talks since November 2022 in an effort to reduce regional tensions. The patrol and reconnaissance plane “transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,” the 7th Fleet said in a news release. “By operating within the Taiwan Strait in accordance with international law, the United States upholds the navigational rights and freedoms of all nations.” In a separate statement, the Ministry of National Defense said that it monitored nearby waters and airspace as the aircraft
UNDER DISCUSSION: The combatant command would integrate fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups to defend waters closest to the coastline, a source said The military could establish a new combatant command as early as 2026, which would be tasked with defending Taiwan’s territorial waters 24 nautical miles (44.4km) from the nation’s coastline, a source familiar with the matter said yesterday. The new command, which would fall under the Naval Command Headquarters, would be led by a vice admiral and integrate existing fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups, along with the Naval Maritime Surveillance and Reconnaissance Command, said the source, who asked to remain anonymous. It could be launched by 2026, but details are being discussed and no final timetable has been announced, the source