The 2023 Yushan Fellow Program has awarded grants to 42 overseas academics interested in teaching and doing research in Taiwan, the Ministry of Education (MOE) said Tuesday.
Of the 11 academics who received Yushan Fellow grants, one received the maximum salary supplement of NT$5 million (US$159,596) a year for a three-year period, with the others getting at least NT$3 million a year for three years.
Of the 31 scholars who received Yushan Young Fellow grants, six received the maximum salary supplements of NT$1.5 million a year for a five-year period, while the others received at least NT$500,000 a year, the MOE said in a statement.
Launched in 2018, the Yushan Fellow Program is aimed at helping higher education institutions in Taiwan attract top international academics and boosting the international standing of Taiwan's higher education system and its academic expertise, according to the MOE.
The grants are designed to supplement the compensation overseas academics receive from local universities, which is generally lower than they might get in similar positions at institutions abroad.
In addition to the salary supplements, every Yushan Fellow or Yushan Young Fellow is eligible for a grant of up to NT$1.5 million a year for teaching, research, international academic collaboration, or personnel expenses, depending on each institution's standards.
The academics' host institutions most apply for the grant to the MOE for them to be able to receive it.
The MOE said it received 87 applications from 14 institutions for the grants under the 2023 program, of which 42 were accepted.
Another 10 were awarded subsidies as "Global Outstanding Talents," the MOE said.
Under that program, the MOE grants selected institutions academic collaboration and administration expenses on an annual basis, and the funding can be allocated to academics at the schools for use in the same areas as Yushan fellows, according to the MOE's website.
National Taiwan University and National Tsing Hua University are among 11 institutions that will host the academics receiving financial support through these programs.
The ministry did not identify any of the overseas scholars or institutions that qualified for the grants.
