I’m toying with the idea of applying for a Masters in Chinese literature, and wondered if anyone has any idea about the pros and cons of applying to National Cheng Kung University instead of, say, NTU or NTNU in Taipei? Or even just studying in Tainan versus Taipei more generally? Thanks!
Are you fluent in Chinese at a University level?
Just about fluent enough I think, whatever that means. And will be fluenter enougher in 11 months time.
In terms of academic matters, they will probably all about the same because they are national universities. NTU is always the most prestigious for everything here in Taiwan but won’t count for very much in the real world. NTU also has a bit more name recognition in the outside world if you are thinking about a PhD program outside Taiwan in the future. But for that, what is far more important is the personal links between individual faculty members and faculty members at the PhD programs. For example, Wang Chiu-Kui at National Tsinghua sent his students to Princeton and Oxbridge for many years because of his relationships with faculty members there.
If I were choosing between these schools, I would probably choose NCKU because of Tainan’s rich cultural life and lower cost of living (esp. rent). If I could choose any school, I would probably choose NDHU National Dong Hwa University in Hualien for lifestyle reasons. Again, NDHU has a excellent faculty like all of these schools, so I would not be choosing a lesser academic experience.
You should probably keep in mind that Taipei is the intellectual and academic capital of Taiwan. So if you were in Taipei, you would perhaps benefit from the many international visiting scholars at NTU and the very important presence of Academia Sinica here.
There is also the matter of your specialty. NTNU is well known for its strengths in philology and the otther traditional discplines of Hanxue. NCCU used to be like this too. Again, everything depends on who your advisor is.
You should be aware that Taiwanese students usually take several years to finish these MA degrees. 4 years is not uncommon. That’s largely because of procrastinationa and angst but also because many advisors are very demanding about the thesis.
What do you want to study and who are your target faculty advisors at each school? That is what you should be thiming about mainly.
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Extremely helpful reply, thank you very much! Reassurance that these National universities will all have excellent faculties is just what I was hoping to hear. Perhaps I should spend a bit of time in Hualien and see if i like it as much as I’m starting to like Tainan. That’s probably a question for another thread…
Academic progression is almost certainly out of the question for me, I’m too old! The masters would be a formal and motivating way to read and understand much more Chinese poetry and philosophy while forcing my Guoyu to keep improving too.
I’ll sound out the overseas admissions departments about the feasibility of getting accepted. I’m probably neither a typical nor ideal candidate (although I have a strong humanities undergraduate degree from years ago) and may have to cast my net a bit more widely.
Given that, are there any other universities not already mentioned that might tick my boxes? Serious academic environment overall, worthwhile lectures/seminars, and a pleasant place to base myself for three-ish years?
Edit: wow Shoufeng in Hualien looks like it could be a lovely place to live!
- Yes, the faculty will be good and about the same at all of the national universities. These jobs are extremely competitive.
- Yes, Shoufeng is beautiful. And it attracts faculty who are often a bit less normie than other institutions. It is also a major center for indigenous studies provide a unique perspective on Chinese studies. A different rich culture that what Tainan offers.
- I would also consider National Chung Cheng University near Minsyong. Also a rural setting near a good-sized city (Chiayi). Great access to the mountains.
- I continue to think that ‘Huayu’ is a safer term in general these days in educated circles. ‘Zhongwen’ is probably even safer even if it is somewhat inaccurate when referring to the spoken language.
- Great. 2. Interesting…
- Will definitely consider National Chung Cheng University too, thank you! Academic environment + rural environment combination is probably my dream. And two such options in theory doubles my chances… Also wikipedia says that campus was the setting for Meteor Garden, the only Taiwanese TV series I watched to the end when it was popular in China.
- OK I’ll prefer Huayu over Guoyu when wanting to distinguish the spoken language from the written/literary one.
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NCCU folks affectionately refer to NCCU as ‘pineapple university’ NHDU is more secluded but both are far calmer than Tainan and its murderous roads. I’m a big fan of Tainan. Just saying.