COMPETITION: The US, Japan, Australia and the UK were the most popular destinations for study, not China, despite the media hype, an education official said
Taipei Times
Date: Mar 16, 2019
By: Rachel Lin / Staff reporter
A table from the Ministry of Education shows where Taiwanese senior-high school graduates pursue further studies abroad, with most going to the US, the UK and Australia. Photo copied by Lin Hsiao-yun, Taipei Times
The number of Taiwanese senior-high school graduates pursuing further studies abroad increased by more than 20 percent from about 32,000 people in 2011 to more than 40,000 people in 2017, the latest data from the Ministry of Education showed.
Due to the nation’s declining birthrate, the number of senior-high school graduates dropped from about 400,000 people in 2011 to 350,000 people in 2017 and further down to about 330,000 people last year, the data showed.
The number of senior-high school graduates pursuing higher education in China increased from 1,433 people in 2011 to 2,567 people in 2017, rising by about 80 percent, but accounting for less than 6 percent of the total number of those studying abroad, which shows that China does not attract Taiwanese students as much as English-speaking countries do.
However, the increasing number of high-school graduates studying abroad poses a threat to the nation’s higher education system. [FULL STORY]
