On December 28th, 2010, the Ministry of Education held the presentation ceremony for the 14th National Chair Professorship Awards and the 54th Outstanding Research Awards. The National Chair Professorship Awards are installed for a three-year term, winners get all the resources he needs from the University which he/she serves, plus a cash prize of N.T. 1 million per annum from the Ministry of Education. The Outstanding Research Awards, on the other hand, carries a certificate of honor and a cash prize of N.T. 600,000.

The 14th National Chair Professorship Awards had five winners in various categories. NTU has two professors winning this Award. They are: for Biology, Medicine, and Agriculture, Professor Che-Ming Teng of the Department of Medicine; for Engineering and Applied Sciences, Professor Huei Wang of the Department of Electrical Engineering. The 54th Outstanding Research Awards had nine winners in various categories. NTU has three professors winning this Award. They are: for Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Professor George Wei-Shu Hou of the Department of Physics; for Biology, Medicine and Agriculture Professor Ann Lii Cheng of the Institute of Oncology; for Engineering and Applied Sciences Professor Der Liang Young of the Department of Civil Engineering.

To highlight the prestige of these two Awards, Ministry of Education specifically invited President Ying-Jeou Ma and Premier Den-Yih Wu to serve as presenters of the Awards. In his speech, in addition to extending his congratulations to the winners, President Ying-Jeou Ma also confirmed Ministry of Education’s efforts in promoting the quality of higher education of Taiwan. He mentioned, in particular, Ministry of Education’s “Aim for Top University Plan,” and the “Plan for promoting excellence in university education,” whose meritorious results made Taiwan universities’ rankings achieve a significant improvement in Shanghai Jiao-Tung University’s World University Rankings and in the rankings compiled by the UK QS higher education supplements. The winners of these two awards, the President said, should utilize Taiwan as a starting point, and continue to demonstrate our strengths and achievements to the international society, while spurring the waves of academic excellence, and setting the best learning model for young students.

When Premier Deng-Yih Wu took the podium, he praised the winners of these two Awards as great human assets of our nation. Through their academic strength, they crossed the national barriers, and made Taiwan stand prominent in the world. He also emphasized the importance of talent nurturing and talent recruitment. Starting from August of 2010, the government has implemented the “Flexible Salary Plan”, he said, whereby through the funds of the Ministry of Education and the funds of Executive Yuan’s National Science and Technology Development Plan, universities in Taiwan can get a raise in the salaries paid to their professors and research personnel, so as to retain the outstanding domestic talents or to recruit excellent teachers from abroad. The “Flexible Salary Plan,” said the Premier, aims also to promote the internationalization of Taiwan’s universities and to promote the policies of allowing students from mainland China to study in Taiwan. Attracting good students from abroad to study in Taiwan is vitally important, the Premier said, so our government’s policies must be geared toward enhancing the overall interests of Taiwan and promoting our national competitiveness.