A.To Realize Teaching innovation and Elevate Teaching Quality
The annual “Freshmen Camp”in 2021 allows students to have a better understanding of the “4 years for One Problem” courses so as to strengthen the interpersonal interactions, team work, and pragmatic abilities among students. The percentage of freshman students attending the “Freshmen Camp” has gone up from 50.18% to 64.78%, with satisfaction toward the overall courses rising to 4.59, and approval of intellectual rewarding reaching 4.51.
The university actively promotes students’ “Self-Learning Community System," as well as hosting “Results presentation Competition” to acknowledge and award excellent communities. Through the interactive discussions and experience sharing among colleagues, learning plans can thus be jointly completed, thereby strengthening self-learning ability, fostering an attitude of lifelong learning, and instilling the habit of problem-solving by oneself. The types of student communities include: LOHAS, Digital Technology, Professional Talents (competition and accreditation), Multi-Cultural and Startup Dreams. The yearly average applications are between 65~75 cases. Of all the 62 communities which join the competition voluntarily in 2021, 47 of them are verified. The student satisfaction toward the entire activities is 4.58, on average.
B.Developing School Features
In 2021, National Ilan University (NIU) maintained its position in the “Times Higher Education World University Ranking 2022”listings, receiving worldwide recognition. Of 156 universities in Taiwan, only 40 of them are included on the list. Internationally, NIU is ranked 1201+. While domestically, NIU ranks 20th among “Best Comprehensive Universities of Taiwan.”
Innovation Incubation College is established to integrate innovative and creative realms such as the Innovation Incubation Center, 13E Center, Drone Application Research Center, Agricultural Products Value-Adding Sample Center, and Incubation of Small Farmers to serve as the basis, Students’ micro startups can be realized, which in turn promotes a maker mindset among students, ultimately initiating a campus-wide trend. In terms of cultivating students to launch their own business, UIN assisted a student team named “Indigenous Prosperity” to participate the U-start Plans organized by “Youth Development Administration, Ministry of Education.” That particular team was awarded for their excellent performance, and later was transformed to “Indigenous Prosperity Company," setting up their own counters in the Innovation Incubation Center.
C.To Raise Accessibility of Higher Education
In order to raise accessibility of higher Education, NIU assists students who are culturally or economically disadvantaged by providing interview aids and raising the enrollment quota, helping them to better understand the university and provide academic as well as living counseling. In addition, NIU implements specialized student recruitment programs, improves faculty structure and conducts institutional researches. In compliance with the policies of the Ministry of Education, NIU has raised the additional admission placement quota from 2% to 5% for fields/subjects that are more desired by the societal needs of the indigenous population. In 2021, 20.88% of our total enrollment quota is offered to the aforementioned students.
To provide comprehensive Economic assistance for the indigenous students, “Part-Time Scholarship” was granted since 2018. For the past three years, the Scholarship has made a grand total of 990,000 dollars which indicates how the supporting policy is carried out in literal terms. All the work-study jobs on campus are furnished to reduce those off-campus ones so as to maintain students’ ongoing academic studies. With the grant, the students’ financial burden is alleviated thus to enjoy what school life has to offer.
D.Fulfillment of Social Responsibility
UIN formed the USR HUB Innovation Incubation, implementing out four projects in total, to link closely to local resources and combine the characteristics developed on campus. In collaboration with local community, it is to rejuvenate the local living and work on in-depth services to provide. Through the comprehension of the local history and environment, students were to discover the knowledge which exists in their daily life, starting from cultural identity where culture can take its root. UIN is in compliance with Ilan County Government’s goals to develop an environmental and aging friendly County to co-create and co-exist in the society.
In assisting the industrial upgrading, through government-industry-university collaboration, NIU has signed an “Ilan District USR Alliance letter of Intent” with the local government and the colleges in the Ilan district. By signing the Memorandum of Understanding, “Rural Revitalization and diversified Fishery Industry”, with offices of Suao, Datong and Nanao Townships, UIN put the Social Practice into action with determination, actualizing the University Social Responsibility. 2 USR projects are implemented. Case one, “Realize Mountain Spirit, Constructing Sustainable Agricultural Villages”, has established three healthy agricultural sites, developing activities regarding the Food and Agriculture educational well as Sustainable Agriculture to guide the students to work with the young farmers as a team in the local community/Recreational Agricultural Areas, and incorporating smart technology to design Apps for in-depth and interactive experience of rural villages. Case two, “Tayal Tribal Industry Vitalization Project," fosters and supports the indigenous economic industries in Datong and Nanao Townships. The applied areas are Pyanan, Qalang Skikun, Kalan dalah and Ying Shih tribes in Datong Township, Tung Yueh, Chin Yueh and K’yang tribes in Nanao Township. It is to take an active role to promote a modality for cooperation toward indigenous agriculture, advocating the organic and environmental friendly farming as to popularize the indigenous agricultural specialties.
NIU encourages students who participate in Service-Learning programs or school clubs to depart from school and join the community in order to strengthen the connectivity with the surrounding locality. Assorted programs are organized for various institutions including Hope Primary School, Digital Learning Partner, Science Popularization Education in Ilan and The Camp for a taste of Senior High School life, in order to reinforce the influence on local communities and high schools as well.