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What makes ICI different from other colleges or departments?

Established in 2018, the International College of Innovation (ICI) is the first college in Taiwan that provides an innovative global studies education in English to exceptional Taiwanese and international students. ICI students earn a bachelor’s degree in Global Studies grounded in three tracks: global governance, sustainability and society, and data analytics. ICI’s multi-disciplinary approach allows students to access resources from all across NCCU, and a comprehensive and professional approach to education prepare students for promising careers in business, international affairs, and the social and data sciences. Students who wish to pursue further education will find themselves well-prepared for graduate study, whether at the masters or doctoral levels.

ICI students are taught by our distinguished research and teaching faculty, who provide a top-tier education in English. Our faculty and administrators cultivate an innovative learning environment that combines proven scholarship with current research in an international setting. ICI is proud to bring bright, promising students from around the world to Taiwan and provide them opportunities to study, understand, and explore Taiwan and Asia. International students have access to Mandarin Chinese language courses to enhance their time in Taiwan, as well as opportunities to pursue specialization in other Asian languages like Korea, Japanese, Thai, and Vietnamese.

Most of ICI’s courses focus on interdisciplinary studies. Does ICI have specialized research/study area?

Knowledge acquisitions should have no boundaries. And we would always tell our student to “Design your course schedule as you would design your life!”. At ICI, we wish to educate elites that are well-rounded instead of insular elitism. The program includes three fields of specializations: Asian Society and Sustainable Development, Global Governance and Democratic Governance, and Global Technology and Innovation Management. In the first two years, students will receive trainings for fundamental theories in respective fields that serve as gateway courses for the third and fourth year. Students in their senior years will choose two of the three specializations by following different optional courses ranging from risk management, disaster mitigation, evidence-based policies as well as proactive measures for sustainable development.

Our courses integrate resources across universities and subjects that allow students to observe the world through different lens of disciplines: the Anthropocene and Geopolitics course is in collaboration with Taipei Fine Arts Museum and five top universities in Taiwan (e.g. National Taiwan University, and National Yang-Ming University…ect.) for the bi-annual exhibition curating by the world-renowned sociologist, Prof. Bruno Latour. As a proactive response to the COVID-19 outbreak, ICI’s other featured course, Global Health Governance, also showcasing our continuous efforts in creative development of our course contents. Students can examine current global health system from the lens of public health, sociology, laws, and communication through WHO simulation, bringing them the most real-time experiences through role playing and expanding their world-views.

These specialized courses are meant to serve as preparation for our students before entry into future job placement and is a strategic way to develop worldview. Incorporating reflective practice can build problem-solving skills and shape attitudes to prepare student competent as leaders in the prospective fields. ICI has the most innovative courses that connects issues with disciplines. These serve as the springboard to a more informed involvement and inclusion in policy-level discussions, upscaling students to be future leaders of high potentials.

How many students are admitted to ICI each year?

Each year, ICI takes on 10 domestic students and 40 international students. Upon its established, our first years’ (Yr. 2020) domestic intake had been highly competitive among the star-lit high schools. Over 400 students were vying for the limited quota (10 people) for domestic student places and more from myriads of nations for international admissions this year.

Are ICI students able to double major or minor?

ICI is known to celebrate interdisciplinary education. The college encourages inter-academic courses to extend the application of relevant knowledge and training. Students are encouraged to take on double or minor major. For details and regulations, please contact ICI’s staff for more information.

Does ICI provide free foreign language courses (e.g. Chinese, Vietnamese, Indonesia)?

For international students whose native-language isn’t Chinese, ICI also provides students the 24-credits compulsory Chinese courses (IUP courses) to upgrade their language proficiency with our dedicated lecturers. Students can have full immersion to the Chinese learning environment, with up to 10 weekly study hours for a duration of 2 years. ICI will be in close connection with Foreign Language Center at NCCU for other foreign language courses in the future.

What will be ICI students’ job perspective?

ICI’s multi-disciplinary, comprehensive, and professional approach to education prepares students for promising careers in business, international affairs, and the social and data sciences. Students who wish to pursue further education will find themselves well-prepared for graduate study, whether at the masters or doctoral levels.

Does ICI provide opportunities for internships?

Yes. For more information on internship opportunities for ICI students, please visit Jobs and Internships.

Are Courses at ICI all taught in English?

Yes. ICI courses are conducted entirely in English.

Do ICI students have access to study abroad, student exchange, or overseas research opportunities?

Yes. ICI students are encouraged to complete an overseas exchange program as part of the Global Studies major. Students in their third and fourth years also have access to short-term overseas research opportunities at our partner universities. For more information, please visit Student Exchange Program

What is the current configuration of ICI student body?

ICI is proud of its diverse student body. Our students come from all corners of the world (e.g. South-east Asia, east Asia, middle east, central-south America, Europe). All students, whether domestic or of foreign origins, are skilled in multiple languages and shows remarkable performance in statistics, data science, social sciences and knowledge in business.