CONTENT APPLICATION DOCUMENT CHECKLIST ................................................ - 1 - PREPARATIONS BEFORE COMING TO TAIWAN CHECKLIST ............ - 1 - ARRIVING IN TAIWAN!.............................................................................. - 2 - ARRIVING AT MDU!.................................................................................... - 2 - MDU STUDENT CARD................................................................................ - 3 - MDU LOCATION.......................................................................................... - 4 - MDU CAMPUS.............................................................................................. - 4 - STUDENT HOUSING ................................................................................... - 5 - ALIEN RESIDENT CERTIFICATE (ARC)................................................... - 6 - VISA EXTENSION........................................................................................ - 7 - HOW TO APPLY FOR YOUR ALIEN RESIDENCY CERTIFICATE ....... - 8 - MOBILE PHONE SERVICES ..................................................................... - 10 - OPENING A BANK ACCOUNT IN TAIWAN............................................ - 10 - TAIWAN’S CURRENCY............................................................................. - 10 - NATIONAL HEALTH INSURANCE (NHI) ............................................... - 11 - HEALTH CARE ........................................................................................... - 11 - SCHOLARSHIPS......................................................................................... - 12 - MINGDAO C.W. WANG MEMORIAL LIBRARY .................................... - 13 - MANDARIN TRAINING CENTER (MTC) ............................................... - 14 - ON-CAMPUS DINING................................................................................ - 15 - ON-CAMPUS CONVENIENCE.................................................................. - 15 - CENTER FOR PHYSICAL EDUCATION.................................................. - 16 - STUDENT CLUBS ...................................................................................... - 16 - TRANSPORTATION.................................................................................... - 17 - FOOD AND LIFE......................................................................................... - 18 - TOURISM IN TAIWAN............................................................................... - 21 - THE CLIMATE OF TAIWAN...................................................................... - 24 - TAIWANESE CULTURE............................................................................. - 24 - IMPORTANT TELEPHONE NUMBERS: .................................................. - 27 - ◎ Application Document Checklist: □ Valid Passport (You also need to have a student visa.) □ Individual Health Insurance Certificate (including emergency medical insurance with repatriation expenses) □ MingDao University admission letter □ Proof of financial support or scholarship documentation □ Passport photo (for files or documents used in Taiwan) ◎ Preparations Before Coming to Taiwan Checklist: □ Prepare some New Taiwan dollars (NT$). At the Taoyuan International Airport immigration lobby, there are branches of the Bank of Taiwan and Mega International Commercial Bank, both of which provide foreign currency exchange services. For more details, please refer to http://www.taoyuan-airport.com/chinese/store3_2/1103 ) □ Pack electrical plug adapters. (Taiwan’s sockets: 2-hole socket, or 2-hole socket plus a circular ground prong) □ Copy important documents that you need while in Taiwan. All documents must be certified by the relevant authorities in their respective countries. □ Inform the Office of International Affairs of the time and place that you will arrive in Taiwan, and we can arrange an airport shuttle service. 1 ◎ Arriving in Taiwan! To welcome everyone to Taiwan, and to ensure that everyone can arrive at their accommodations safely, we offer an airport shuttle service. Please inform the Office of International Affairs the week before your arrival in Taiwan. We will send a representative to pick you up at the airport.. If you cannot find our representative in the airport lobby, please go to the airport desk (located in the Arrivals Hall) and have them page the MDU representative. ◎ Arriving at MDU! To help everyone adapt to life in Central Taiwan, we have arranged for our students to assist you in getting to know the campus well, purchasing your daily necessities, and dealing with any problems at school and in your daily life. 2 ◎ MDU Student Card The Student ID card is issued free of charge, to prove that you are an MDU student. When you arrive at school, you can apply at the Office of International Affairs. When you want to borrow books or any media materials from the school library, you must use the student ID card. Moreover, the card also provides you with a lot of convenience and benefits. For instance, you can use it to prove your identity. When you want to go shopping, eat out, get a haircut, or go to the movies, , you will be able to enjoy discount prices, as long as you have your student ID card. If the card is lost or damaged, you can re-apply at the Office of Academic Affairs (there is a handling fee of NT$300.) While the student card application is being processed, you can use the receipt as proof of registration to enjoy all the benefits listed above. 3 ◎ MDU Location ◎ MDU Campus 4 ◎ Student Housing z Zhiqiang Hall TEL: 886-4-887-6660 Address: 369 Wenhua Rd.,Pitou, Changhua County 52345, Taiwan (R.O.C) Zhiqiang Hall is the student dormitory located on MDU campus. There are refrigerators, televisions, water dispensers, vending machines, and coin-operated laundry facilities. The Learning Center is on the first floor. There are many extra-curricular activities held in the dorm. There is a reading room for special activities or social gatherings. On the ground floor of the dorm, there is a supermarket (selling daily necessities, providing copying services, stocking textbooks, selling snacks). For meals, there is the delicious Food Street in the basement, where there are many kinds of dishes to choose from. z Mingcheng Hall TEL: 886-4-889-9641 Address: 225-11, Sec. 3, Zhongyang Rd., Xizhou Township, Changhua County 524, Taiwan (R.O.C.) Mingcheng dormitory is located around 5 minutes away from MDU campus by car. There is a free shuttle bus from MDU to Mingcheng Hall. This dorm is near the bus stops for Youren, Yuanlin, and Ritong, among other local towns. It is convenient to go to any place. And there are delicious food stalls along the street, as well as bookstores, copy shops, convenience stores, clinics, a supermarket (many kinds of snacks in there!), a post office, a library, the bureau of public health, and the main office of Chunghwa Telecom. There are many places for leisure activities near Xizhong Senior High School, Huabo Park, and Senlin Park. There is a small-town charm, and the local residents are quite friendly. 5 ◎ Alien Resident Certificate (ARC) Foreigners who enter the country with a resident or student visa should apply for an Alien Resident Certificates (ARC) within 15 days of arrival. Therefore, students who plan to study for more than 1 semester will need to apply for an Alien Resident Certificate (ARC) at the Changhua County Service Center of the National Immigration Agency (18, Heping St., Yuanlin Township, Changhua County 510, Taiwan). Be sure to have the following documents with you: z A completed application from: https://www.immigration.gov.tw/public/Data/09216474271.pdf z 1 color photo (passport photo specs) z Original and photocopied passport z Registered student identification card and certificate of enrollment and its photocopy z Fees: One year term: NTD$1,000. Two year term: NTD$2,000. Three year term: NTD$3,000. In case the ARC is lost or damaged and needs to be replaced, a replacement fee of NTD$500 must be paid. For more information, visit: http://iff.immigration.gov.tw/mp.asp 6 ◎ Visa Extension Exchange students who will attend classes for a single semester will need to extend their visas at the Changhua County Service Center of the National Immigration Agency. Each extension must not exceed the originally permitted time on the visa. The cumulative length of stay must not exceed 6 months (180 days). Those who expect the cumulative length of stay to exceed 180 days in case of force majeure or other major event should apply for an extension in advance. Be sure to have the following documents with you: z An application form: https://www.immigration.gov.tw/public/Data/09216474271.pdf z Original and photocopied passport z Original student identity card or statement of attendance z For more information ,visit: http://iff.immigration.gov.tw/mp.asp 7 ◎ How to Apply for Your Alien Residency Certificate (ARC) For a damaged ARC, which must be returned, or a lost card, for which a deposition must be signed, or a request for a change of information, the cost to re-apply is NT$500. You should get your new card within 15 business days. z Required documents for the Alien Resident Certificate (ARC): 1. An application form with one photo. (Note: the size of the photo should be the same size as the local people’s ID) 2. Your passport, ARC (original), and one copy of your ARC. 3. The following related documentation and copies: (1) a degree, a receipt of paid tuition, or a student ID. (2) the Mandarin Training Center’s