News--Welcome to National Chiayi University

　　In 2021, the total research and development funding for National Chiayi University from the ministries, county and city governments, and public or private enterprises has reached a record high. According to statistics, the total funding for research and development has risen from about NT$432 million in 2016 to as high as approximately NT$680 million in 2021, showing a 1.57-fold increase. This is testament that NCYU has made significant progress in academic performance with the concerted efforts of all the faculty and staff members.

　　President Chyung Ay indicated that NCYU has around NT$2.5 billion in university funds each year. In addition to the NT$1.1 billion subsidized by the Ministry of Education, the remaining NT$1.4 billion has to be raised by the university, which causes a great financial pressure in facilitating academic development. NCYU is located in Chianan Plain, the largest agricultural hub in Taiwan, surrounded by counties and cities dominated by traditional small and medium enterprises. The geographical position makes it relatively difficult for the university to seek external funding for research and development projects. The university has thus presented a number of industry-academia performance incentives, including “Academic-Industrial Cooperation Outstanding Teacher Award,” “Academic-Industrial Cooperation Outstanding Center Award,” “Flexible Salary Incentives for Teachers with Outstanding Performance in Implementing the MOE Higher Education SPROUT Project,” and “Diversified Faculty Promotion System. “All these aim to encourage the faculty to apply for external research and development projects. Through joint efforts of all the faculty and staff members, the total amount of research and development funding has increased year by year and reached a new high in 2021. Despite a busy schedule as the administrative head of the university, President Chyung Ay sets an example by winning the Academic-Industrial Cooperation Outstanding Teacher Award for five consecutive years from 2017 to 2021, and ranking the first in the university for three years in a row from 2018 to 2020.

　　According to President Chyung Ay, the university has invested nearly NT$10 million to support research in signature areas in the past two years, which has produced fruitful initial results. With this as a basis, the university will continue to seek interdisciplinary or integrated projects from the Ministry of Science and Technology or the Council of Agriculture, Executive Yuan. They will also continue to provide unwavering support to the industry, government, academia, and research and strive to reach the next level through inter-university or interdisciplinary cooperation with the “National University System of Taiwan,” as well as matching grants for internal projects and subsidies for new faculty research laboratories.