National Taiwan University (NTU) is a public research university in Taipei and the oldest and highest-ranked university in Taiwan. It traces its history to Taihoku Imperial University, founded in 1928, and has carried its present name since 1945. International students are admitted to bachelor's, master's and doctoral programmes taught in Chinese or English, and NTU's Language Center runs year-round Mandarin courses.

NTU in numbers

• No. 54 in the QS World University Rankings, No. 23 in the QS Asia University Rankings and No. 1 in Taiwan.
• 34,935 students in 2025: 17,568 undergraduates and 17,367 graduate students.
• 17 colleges, 3 professional schools, 61 departments and 154 graduate institutes; around 300 degree programmes.
• More than 1,900 English-taught courses across all colleges.
• Quotas for international students, September 2027 entry: 345 bachelor's, 550 master's and 200 doctoral places.

Programmes for international students

• Chinese-taught bachelor's: 43 majors; English-taught bachelor's: 8 majors, including the Global Undergraduate Program in Semiconductors.
• Master's: 62 Chinese-taught and 60 English-taught programmes, including the Global MBA and the International College programmes.
• PhD: 48 Chinese-taught and 60 English-taught programmes, including joint TIGP programmes with Academia Sinica.
• Mandarin courses at the Chinese Language Division of the NTU Language Center: four 12-week terms a year, 15 hours a week.

Tuition fees (2027 intake)

Fees are the 2026/27 rates per NTU's 2027 admission guidelines; the 2027/28 rates have not been published yet. Graduate students pay full tuition for the first two years and only basic tuition (about half) from the third year. The application fee is TWD 2,000 (USD 80) per department, TWD 1,500 (USD 60) from the third department.

Application periods (2027 intake)

Language and age requirements

CSCA for bachelor's applicants

NTU is in Taiwan and does not use the CSCA, which applies only to universities in mainland China. Bachelor's applicants are selected on their school diploma, full transcripts, language certificate and the documents each department asks for.

Selection process

• Department committees review the documents; some departments add an oral or written exam or an interview.
• An applicant can be considered by up to five departments, but enrolls in only one.
• Results, including NTU scholarship decisions: 14 January 2027 for the 1st round and 8 April 2027 for the 2nd; admitted students confirm within a week, and waitlist results follow a week later.
• Some 1st-round applications are marked Postponed and are decided together with the 2nd round.

Main Campus

The 113-hectare Main Campus is in the heart of Taipei, on Roosevelt Road, and gives easy access to the whole city. It holds the academic buildings, libraries, sports facilities, dormitories, restaurants and even an experimental farm.

• NTU Main Library: more than 4.3 million volumes, the largest university library in Taiwan, with 24-hour study spaces and discussion rooms.
• Sports: a gymnasium, running track, outdoor and indoor heated pools, and courts for basketball, football, volleyball, badminton, tennis, baseball and squash; most equipment can be borrowed free.
• Health Center with low co-pays for students, and a Counseling Center working in Chinese and English.
• NTU Experimental Farm with greenhouses and a livestock farm, running about 80 research projects a year.
• Cafeterias, convenience stores and fast-food outlets on campus, with a 10% student discount at some chains.

Language Center

Mandarin courses of the Chinese Language Division are held at the NTU Language Center on Xinhai Road, Da'an District, next to the Main Campus.

On-campus apartments

Who gets a place

• International, overseas Chinese, Hong Kong, Macau and mainland Chinese students have priority for on-campus housing.
• Rooms range from single rooms to rooms with up to three roommates; Prince House has 24-hour front desk service.
• Most general dorms are reserved for undergraduates; all dorms have trained staff on hand.
• Living off campus costs about TWD 48,000–72,000 per semester.

Other living costs

A semester lasts about four months; the academic year runs from September to December and from February to June.

Scholarships for international students

Deadlines and rules (2027 intake)

• NTU scholarships are requested together with the degree application and need no extra documents; decisions come with the admission results on 14 January 2027 (1st round) and 8 April 2027 (2nd round).
• NTU International Undergraduate Student Scholarship is renewed each academic year only with a GPA of 3.38 or above; it does not cover administrative fees, thesis advisor fees, insurance, housing, internet or credit fees, and students who defer admission lose it.
• A scholarship does not guarantee admission, and admission does not guarantee a scholarship.
• Holders of the government Taiwan Scholarship cannot also receive NTU scholarships.
• Government scholarships (MOE, MOFA, Huayu Enrichment) are awarded by Taiwan's ministries through Taiwan's representative offices abroad, not by NTU.
• Amounts are from the NTU brochure of August 2026; the USD equivalents there assume USD 1 = TWD 30.

Key milestones

The first president of Taihoku Imperial University was Taira Shidehara; the first president of National Taiwan University was Tsung-lo Lo.

Ranking positions

Disciplines

• NTU is a comprehensive university covering 17 colleges, from liberal arts and law to medicine, engineering and agriculture.
• The Graduate School of Advanced Technology trains specialists in integrated circuit design, semiconductor devices, nanoengineering and precision health.
• Joint TIGP doctoral programmes with Academia Sinica, Taiwan's national academy, cover AI of Things, bioinformatics, neuroscience, earth system science and molecular and chemical sciences.

Global partnerships

• 972 partner schools worldwide: 556 in Asia, 267 in Europe, 128 in the Americas, 16 in Oceania and 5 in Africa.
• Exchange and visiting programmes with partner universities, as well as dual-degree programmes.
• Joint doctoral programmes (TIGP) with Academia Sinica.

International education

• Around 300 degree programmes open to international students, and more than 1,900 English-taught courses.
• Free Chinese classes for degree students: College Chinese, General and Enhancing Chinese, and credit-bearing Applied Chinese.
• Short-term programmes of NTU Plus Academy: Spring+ (3 weeks in March) and Summer+ (6 weeks from June to August) Chinese Language and Culture.
• The International Chinese Language Program (ICLP) offers intensive Chinese, 20 hours a week in groups of 2–4 students.
• The Office of International Affairs supports international students, with consultations in English and a mentorship programme.