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Chapter Law Content

Chapter 3 Alterations
Section 2 Changes of institutional status
Article 20
A junior college applying to change its institutional status to become an institute of technology shall meet the following criteria:
1. The junior college has had excellent educational results and has tangible evidence of its performance.
2. The administration of the junior college’s recruiting and enrolment, student status, personnel affairs, accounting, finance, courses, and computerization of administrative matters is functioning normally, and the junior college has established a soundly operating institutional system, and the MOE does not have any instance of major administrative error or negligence on record.
3. The junior college has been operating in compliance with MOE policy goals and associated regulations.
4. For a private junior college, its board of directors, registration as a legal person, updates made and operations are normal, and it has established a soundly operating institutional system.
A skills-based senior high school that changes its institutional status to become a junior college is not permitted to change its institutional status to become an institute of technology.
Article 21
The process for any junior college changing its institutional status to become an institute of technology, or any junior college changing its institutional status to become an institute of technology with an affiliated junior college division, in principle, is only handled once each year. The base date for data calculations for all reviews of basic criteria is February 1 each year.
The MOE procedures governing accepting an application for a change of institutional status and its approval are as follows:
1. A junior college that meets the criteria for changing its institutional status set out in the previous article may draw up a change of institutional status plan; after the plan has been reviewed and given due deliberation by the junior college’s governing board, and in the case of a private junior college after the plan has also received mandatory approval from its board of directors, the junior college shall submit an application to the MOE before the designated deadline for the current year with its change of institutional status plan, minutes of the meetings at which it was deliberated, basic information indicating compliance with the requirements set out in the subparagraphs of the previous article, and associated forms attached.
2. The MOE may form a case review panel to conduct the review. The review is divided into two stages, a preliminary review and a follow-up review; the documents submitted by each junior college are reviewed at the preliminary review stage.
3. If a junior college passes the preliminary review, the MOE shall undertake an on-site inspection, and then, depending on the results of the on-site inspection, may convene a follow-up review meeting to discuss the case, and make specific recommendations regarding the junior college's future plans and long-term development. A junior college that has passed the follow-up review will be given approval to change its institutional status.
A private educational institution that has received approval from the MOE to change its institutional status shall undertake an update of the registration of its school endowment corporation.
Article 22
A junior college that changes its institutional status to become an institute of technology, or a junior college that changes its institutional status to become an institute of technology with an affiliated junior college division shall set up departments (subjects, sections), graduate institutes, and degree programs in accordance with the following provisions:
1. The institute of technology shall establish three or more departments during the first year after approval of its change of institutional status. In principle, these departments will offer subjects that the former junior college taught, and achieved excellent results for, and that there are sufficient qualified teachers to teach; in principle, the institute of technology will also add two-year technical (academic) program departments and in-service programs in a continuing education department.
2. From the second year after its change of institutional status was approved, the institute of technology may, in conjunction with its developmental needs, set up additional departments and/or subjects and make adjustments to current departments and subject, and from the fifth year it may add graduate institutes. Each educational institution shall undertake setting up any additional departments (subjects, sections), graduate institutes, and degree programs or any adjustments to the current ones in accordance with review principles, regulations, and procedures governing any such additions or adjustments in that year.
Article 23
After considering the economic, educational, demographic, transportation, cultural, and resource circumstances of a county or municipality that does not provide junior college education, the MOE may select a public skills-based senior high school that meets the following criteria and eligibility conditions, or it may amalgamate several such schools, and change the institutional status of the original school or the amalgamated schools to that of a junior college and set up an affiliated skills-based senior high school division there:
1. The daytime division of the school has a total of at least 40 classes.
2. The average enrollment rate in the most recent three years was at least 85%.
3. The skills-based senior high school’s site, school buildings, and teaching equipment and facilities: these are all in accordance with the provisions of Article 7.
4. Courses: Courses shall be set up in compliance with the following principles:
(1) Courses shall be in compliance with overall national development needs and be linked with local commercial and industry development needs.
(2) Courses shall extend provision of education with a practical orientation and match the junior college’s specific developmental focus.
(3) Appropriate related practical training shall be arranged designed to help meet the objectives of each subject area, and specific practical training plans shall be compiled. Practical training plans shall include the training courses, training modes, number of training hours, and qualifications of the teachers involved.
5. Change of institutional status plan: The school shall provide specific accurate details of its current situation, and a rational and complete plan setting out how it will achieve the standards required to change its institutional status and the demands it would face following such a change, and draw up a feasible implementation plan.
Article 24
The provisions of Articles 7 and 21 shall apply, mutatis mutandis, when dealing with the site, buildings, equipment and facilities, teaching staff, establishment capital and funds, and the application and review procedures for the change of institutional status of an institute of technology that was formerly a junior college that is reverting back to being a junior college, or of a university of science and technology that was formerly called an institute of technology that will become a junior college.
Changing the institutional status of a junior college to make it a skills-based senior high school shall be handled, mutatis mutandis, in accordance with the provisions of Articles 4 and 6 of the Senior High School Education Act pertaining to applying to establish such a school following a change of institutional status.
When teachers at a junior college that has changed its institutional status and become a skills-based senior high school who do not have a secondary school teaching certificate continue to hold a teaching position there, the MOE may arrange for a teacher training university to offer pre-service teacher education courses on a case by case basis within six years after the change of institutional status to provide such teachers opportunities for further training.
Teachers at a junior college that has changed its institutional status to become a skills-based senior high school such as referred to in the previous paragraph who have completed the teacher pre-service education courses prescribed in the Teacher Education Act and have been employed teaching at the junior college for two years may be exempt from the requirement to undertake an education practicum prescribed by the Teacher Education Act, and they shall be issued a secondary school teaching certificate by the MOE after they pass the teacher qualifications test.
Article 24-1
If any one of the circumstances listed below apply to an institute of technology that was formerly a junior college, or to a university of science and technology that was formerly called an institute of technology, the MOE may issue an order requiring the educational institution to change its institutional status to become a junior college, in accordance with the provisions of Article 7-2 of the Junior College Law. The provisions of Articles 7 shall apply, mutatis mutandis, when dealing with the site, buildings, equipment and facilities, teaching staff, establishment capital and funds.
1. If the total number of students is less than 3,000, and the new student registration rate is less than fifty percent in the two most recent years.
2. If a rating of tier three or lower was achieved in the vocational and technological college and university accreditations on two consecutive occasions (a concession pass or a failure), or if a rating of tier three or lower was achieved in the most recent institutional accreditation (at least three-quarters of the programs failed to pass).
3. If major administrative errors or negligence were recorded by the MOE for two consecutive academic years, or if two or more major administrative errors or negligence were recorded by the MOE within the same academic year.
4. If financial forecasts indicate that within one year the educational institution will be unable to cover its expenses or face financial difficulties.
If any one of the circumstances listed below apply to a junior college that was formerly a skills-based senior high school, the MOE may issue an order requiring the junior college to undergo change of institutional status and become a skills-based senior high school, in accordance with the provisions of Article 7, Paragraph 4 of the Junior College Law, with the provisions of Paragraph 2 of the same article applying, mutatis mutandis; the provisions of Articles 4 and 6 of the Senior High School Education Act that apply to applications for the establishment of schools shall also apply, mutatis mutandis, to an educational institution after it has undergone such a change of institutional status:
1. If the total number of students is less than 1,800, and the new student registration rate is less than fifty percent in the two most recent years.
2. If any one of the circumstances listed in Subparagraphs 2 to 4 of the previous paragraph apply.
Article 24-2
An educational institution that has been ordered to change its institutional status by the MOE in accordance with the provisions of the previous article shall within three months draw up a change of institutional status plan; after the plan has been reviewed and given due deliberation by the educational institution’s governing board, and in the case of a private educational institution after the plan has also received mandatory approval from its board of directors, the educational institution shall submit the change of institutional status plan, minutes of the meeting at which it was deliberated, and related information to the MOE for ratification.
The change of institutional status plan referred to in the previous paragraph shall include the following items:
1. The reason for the change of institutional status.
2. Departmental adjustments, course planning, and mid-term and long-term development plans after the change of institutional status.
3. Plans for how the educational institution’s facilities, equipment, files, documents, and information will be dealt with.
4. Plans and measures for how the current teaching and other staff will be dealt with.
5. Measures to assist the support and transfer of current students.
6. Plans for other matters pertaining to the change of institutional status.
The procedure for the MOE to review the change of institutional status matters referred to in the previous article is as follows:
1. An expert assessment panel may be formed to carry out an on-site inspection and assessment and to review the change of institutional status plan, the minutes of the meetings at which it was deliberated, and related information that were submitted by the educational institution. An educational institution that passes that review process shall then be reviewed in accordance with the provisions of Article 3.
2. An educational institution that has passed the Review Committee review referred to in the previous subparagraph shall be given approval by the MOE to change its institutional status.