The University of Utah’s College of Mines and Earth Sciences (CMES) has signed dual degree agreements with the College of Science at National Taiwan University (NTU). The agreement allows students to concurrently earn degrees from both universities. This program, along with another agreement between CMES and Taiwan’s National Central University (NCU), are the first international dual degree programs at the U. The NTU program builds upon an existing and successful exchange student program between the two universities.

This unique international opportunity allows undergraduate students in the Departments of Atmospheric Sciences and Geology & Geophysics at both the U and NTU to obtain dual bachelor’s degrees after spending at least one year visiting the other campus and satisfying graduation requirements of both institutions. (Students at NCU can come to the U to earn a dual degree, but not vice versa.) Due to the quality and similarity of core coursework offered between the corresponding departments, students should be able to satisfy the graduation requirements without much difficulty, guided by the course articulation as part of the dual degree agreement.

Darryl Butt, dean of CMES, John Lin, professor of atmospheric sciences and Fan-Chi Lin, associate professor of geology and geophysics, worked closely with Sabine Klahr in the U’s Office for Global Engagement to develop the agreements. Their efforts included visits to both institutions to discuss the details of the programs.

“This innovative collaborative degree program is a fantastic opportunity for both students and faculty to leverage the diverse opportunities at two world-class institutions,” Butt said. “Any student who enrolls in one of these dual degree earth science programs will graduate with valuable cultural and leadership skills. I’m really looking forward to watching this program grow and hope that it sets the stage for other dual degree programs at the University.”

Taiwan, a western Pacific island uplifting by active tectonic convergence, offers complimentary living and learning experiences for U students majoring in earth sciences. The mountainous terrain and subtropical location also enable atmospheric science students to study mountain and meteorology.

NTU was founded in 1928 and is the most prestigious comprehensive university in Taiwan and one of the top-ranked universities in Asia. NTU’s total student body reaches 30,000, with ~15,000 undergraduate and ~15,000 graduate students. NTU’s main campus is in downtown Taipei, a thriving city of 3 million known for its cultural and culinary offerings and democratic expressions.  NTU’s faculty members have strong ties with the international community, particularly through American universities. Early leaders of NTU’s atmospheric sciences department, Ching-Yen Tsay, Wen-Hsiung Ko and Chung-Ming Liu, are U alumni.

For more information about the dual degree program, please contact the participating departments:

Atmospheric Sciences             atmos-office@lists.utah.edu or john.lin@utah.edu
Geology/Geophysics               michelle.tuitupou@utah.edu or fanchi.lin@utah.edu

More information about NTU can be found at the university’s Office of International Affairs.

Any department interested in developing a dual degree with an international partner institution should contact Sabine Klahr in the Office for Global Engagement at s.klahr@utah.edu and check out this website.