Experience report
ANR: 353373
Name:Ciaran McGoldrick
E-mail: C.f.mcgoldrick@Tilburguniversity.edu
Exchange semester: Fall
Academic year: 4
Host University: National Taiwan University
Country: Taiwan
TOPIC: Admission, arrival, housing
How was your arrival organized? Did someone pick you up from the airport/station? Was an
orientation or introduction activity organized? How was accommodation organized? Does the
university provide you with accommodation? What kind of accommodation does the university
provide? Did you have to book your accommodation in advance or did you have to search for a place
to live after you arrived?
There was no pickup organized from the airport/station through the University. The taxi drivers do
not speak English and did not even know what National Taiwan University means. For this reason it
is advisable to print the Chinese address of the dorms before you leave. I was lucky I ran into some
fellow exchange students and took a taxi ride with them. The cost should be around 900 to 1200
NTD (approx. 25 Euro). There was one introduction day through the faculty where you can meet all
fellow exchange students within your faculty and there’s a tour around campus. Besides this the
faculty of management organized a city tour, but I am not sure they do this every year.
Accommodation was probably one of the best aspects of the University. There are several on
campus exchange student dorms that are very clean and cheap. Besides this, it is great because you
are around the fellow exchange students all the time. I stayed at Chang Hosing dorms, which I
believe is the best one. One tip: Make use of the rooftop. Some of my best memories are there,
hanging out with friends and playing music.
TOPIC: Location of university/city
Please describe the city you lived in. Where is the university located in the city? What is the best
place to go to eat/drink/dance/do sports/etc.? What are interesting things to see and do in your
host city? What was different than in Tilburg?
I stayed in Taipei and National Taiwan University is located rather central. Unlike National Chengchi
University which was just outside the city and students required to take a bus or metro to get into
center.
Concerning food there are places to eat literally everywhere. Taiwanese people tend to go out for
dinner and for this reason you can find all sorts of food all over the city which is usually really good
and cheap. Near National Taiwan University there is an area called Gonghuan where students went
for lunch or dinner most of the time. If you like going to clubs then Taipei has an extensive range of
possibilities. There are of course the rather expensive clubs (for example Luxy or Myst) but also
cheap clubs with unlimited drinks and only require an entrance of around 15 euro (girls free or
around 10 Euro). Most exchange students went to these clubs and the most popular ones would be
Hyve or Babe18. If you prefer a quiet bar where you can talk and have some drinks then there are
also plenty possibilities but you really need to look for them as they are not scattered all over Taipei.
We usually went to Revolver which was nice but there is also a little street called ‘the Zone’ that has
some bars.
TOPIC: Academics
Which courses did you take and why? Which courses would you recommend? What did the courses
add to your program at Tilburg University? How does the university compare to Tilburg University
concerning the level of the courses, use of extra material, level of English, workload, etc.? Overall,
were you happy with your academic achievements during your exchange? Please describe the
campus of your host university.
I took: Investments, Japanese Business, Corporate Social Responsibility, Managing global mergers
and acquisitions and international business strategy. I was quite limited in my choice of courses as I
could not take part in any Graduate courses and many Undergraduate courses where in the same
time slots. Nonetheless, I had some interesting courses and I feel especially the Finance courses
contributed to my program in Tilburg University as a lot of the material is not covered in Finance 1
and 2. Besides this, I advise to take Corporate Social Responsibility as the teacher really makes sure
the students engage in the course and I learned a lot from its interactive setting. I am really happy as
I passed all my courses with a good grade. However, I must admit that the level was lower than in
Tilburg University and the workload was not as big. But I guess this is designed for the exchange
students to have more time to enjoy and explore the other aspects of exchange. Which I believe are
more valuable.
TOPIC: Social life
Which social activities organized by the university or students? Did you have contact with local
students? Did you have contact with other exchange students? How did you get along with the local
students and other exchange students? Did you travel to other places/countries during your
exchange?
The University did not organize a lot of activities, but fellow students organized stuff all the time.
From dumpling cooking classes to parties in the common room. I took part in some of them but I
believe at some point you will make friends and start making plans with them and do your own
thing. I had some contact with local students but feel I started doing this too late as it was at the end
of my exchange and I really regret this. So here is tip nr. 2: make sure you get in contact as soon as
possible with some locals that speak English. They are very open and most of the time very much
willing to learn all about you. If you are having some troubles finding somebody just meet up with
your ‘buddy’ (which will be assigned to you) and have a lunch or something with his/her friends. I
feel this is the best way to really learn something about the culture and it is also really convenient
for practicing Chinese if you are interested in learning some. And don’t forget that it can be good for
your network as these locals will also graduate at some point.
TOPIC: Living costs
How did you finance your exchange period, apart from the grant you received from Tilburg
University? What were your living expenses abroad like compared to Tilburg? What did you spend
most of your money on? What would you advice future students to spend their money on? Please
outline your approximate monthly budget whilst on exchange: housing, food, textbooks, etc.
I financed it from my own savings, some parent’s money and studiefinanciering as I did not receive
any grant from Tilburg University. Living expenses were really low and I never really had any money
problems. For this reason I believe Taiwan is a great destination if you plan on traveling around Asia
during the exchange. Besides the fact that it has a central position, you will also have some extra
cash to travel. I traveled to Hong Kong, Macau, the Philippines and Tokyo. There are many nice hikes,
beaches and Islands in Taiwan as well, which I did not do much. So here tip nr. 3: Travel around
Taiwan!
TOPIC: Culture
Did you experience culture shock while on exchange? How would you compare your host culture to
your own culture? What did you learn about your own culture while on exchange? What was
different about your host culture than you expected? What did you like and not like about your host
culture? Do you feel you learned a lot about your host culture, and if not, what would you like to
learn more? How would you describe your host countries culture? If you travelled to other
cities/countries during your exchange, were they different than your host city/country, and how?
I had traveled quite a bit before when I went to Taiwan and I did not really experience much of a
culture shock to be honest. It was quite easy to adopt as Taiwanese people are very helpful and you
meet a lot of people from the start. There are definitely some major differences between Dutch and
Taiwanese culture though. Dutch tend to be very direct and Taiwanese are rather shy and
withdrawn. They are also very organized and make neat lines at the subway and will never throw
any trash on the ground. Whereas Dutch people can be maybe a bit anti-social when it comes to
these type of things. They also do not like it when they cannot offer help if you ask for it. So if you
ask directions and they don’t know, they will just point you in a random direction.
TOPIC: Personal development
What did you learn from the people you met during your exchange? Would you do things differently
if you had the chance, and what would you do differently? What was your best experience, and what
was your worst experience? What will you remember forever about your exchange period? What
was the most important lesson you learned about yourself during your exchange period?
I learned a lot from my exchange. Maybe not so much on an academic level but concerning personal
development and learning from other people I definitely learned more in this semester than any
other semester of my University career. There were some bad experiences of course, but mostly
good and I believe this will be the case most of the time as Taipei is one of the safest cities in the
world. My main lesson in this exchange is that you don’t really realize the value of doing something
like this until you do it. So tip nr. 4: GO ON EXCHANGE!
TOPIC: Tips for future students
Would you recommend an exchange period? Would you recommend your host university? What
should prospective students bring with them/leave behind? What preparation is required for going
on exchange to this destination? Was there anything you should have done in preparation that you
didn’t do?
I believe this is already covered