Taipei and Hsinchu placed 20th and 73rd, respectively, in the top 100 student cities list released May 8 by U.K.-based higher education information provider Quacquarelli Symonds.
Moving up one place from last year, Taipei ranked sixth in Asia ahead of Beijing, 26th; Shanghai, 29th; and Kuala Lumpur, 37th; and behind Tokyo, second; Seoul, 10th; Hong Kong, 12th; Singapore, 15th; and the Kyoto-Osaka-Kobe metropolitan region, 19th. The 2018 index was topped by London, with Melbourne in third.
According to QS, the growing global prominence of Taipei universities has established the city as one of Asia’s leading higher education hubs. Eight tertiary institutions based in the metropolis featured on the QS World University Rankings for 2018, led by National Taiwan University in joint 76th.
Taipei excelled in the category of affordability, with survey respondents also praising its diversity, friendliness and inclusiveness. Boasting a world-leading high-tech sector, the city is an increasingly popular tourist destination owing to its interplay of modern attractions and vibrant traditional culture, QS said.
Rising two spots from last year, Hsinchu was praised as an international hub of technological innovation. Home to Hsinchu Science Park, dubbed the Silicon Valley of the Orient, the city has top-notch industrial infrastructure and hosts numerous world-leading technology companies.
Hsinchu’s two foremost higher education institutions—National Chiao Tung University and National Tsinghua University—both rank in the top 200 of the most recent World University Rankings. They also offer comparatively low tuition fees and internationalized campuses, according to QS.
Described as more laid-back than the nation’s bustling capital, Hsinchu scored high in cost of living. QS also noted the forward-looking, fast-developing city features many museums showcasing its rich history.
Launched in 2012, the index evaluates locations with internationally ranked tertiary institutions and populations of over 250,000. Each city is assessed in criteria spanning affordability, desirability, employer activity and student body diversity, as well as through surveys of students and recent graduates. (KWS-E)
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