Competitive U.S. language scholarship program in Taiwan prepares government student for cross-cultural career

Liberty University senior international relations student William Daniels completed an immersive Chinese language-learning program in Taiwan last summer as a recipient of the prestigious Critical Language Scholarship, sponsored by the U.S. Department of State. The experience helped solidify his decision to focus on a career in East Asian cultures.

The Critical Language Scholarship is a program for U.S. undergraduate and graduate students to learn languages of strategic importance to the United States’ national security, economic prosperity, and engagement with the world. Participants gain critical language skills and intercultural competence, which the State Department says are in demand in a globalized workforce and increase a student’s competitiveness across career fields.

The program allows students to choose from nine languages to study, each corresponding to a nation; Taiwan was the program’s designated country for Chinese.

Daniels had begun studying Chinese his freshman year. His degree program requires four semesters of a language.

“I did not know a lot about China or anything about Chinese prior to that,” he said. “I just picked that class and then took four semesters with Dr. Yan Xie. She’s an amazing teacher and really sparked a lot of my interest in China and in learning Chinese.”

Daniels spent eight weeks in New Taipei City, one of the largest cities in Taiwan, learning Chinese at Tamkang University. Because it is an immersive program, he rarely spoke English.

“In this program, you’re only allowed to speak Chinese. You’re not allowed to speak English to the locals, to your fellow students, to your host family, or the teachers,” Daniels said. “The teachers were amazing. They really found a good balance of helping you and giving you good criticism on how to improve your language.”

The program organized excursions for its CLS scholars, including a trip to the Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company global headquarters — one of the world’s leading microchip manufacturers — and to a local indigenous tribe. Beyond the trips, Daniels frequented the night markets with his friends and spent time with his host family. He also participated in the annual Dragon Boat Day festival, one of the biggest holidays in Taiwan.

“I told some of my friends in my program, ‘My host dad wants to do dragon boat racing, so you guys should do it with me,’” Daniels said. “So, we all did it together and it was really fun, and we won.”

Daniels was placed with a family that had two children — a 9-year-old and a 7-year-old.

“My host family was amazing. I can’t talk about them enough,” Daniels said. “They were so kind, so welcoming … they made sure that I was welcomed into the country and that I was comfortable. I think that was probably the best part of my experience in Taiwan.”

The cross-cultural experience also taught him lessons in encountering different religious beliefs.

“Being able to be in a household that practices polytheistic religion, I got to learn about that, and they also got to learn a lot about, and ask me a lot of questions on, Christianity,” Daniels said. “It was very, very cool to be able to dialogue between Christianity and a polytheistic religion, which I’ve never gotten to do before.”

His time in Taiwan affirmed his calling: to study Chinese and East Asian cultures.

“I want to be fluent in Chinese and really grow because you never stop learning a language, especially a language like Chinese, and I never want to stop my learning experience.”

Daniels said the opportunities available to him at Liberty helped prepare him for his time abroad and for a career in international relations.

“Liberty offers so many opportunities to go on mission trips or to go with Study Abroad to different countries. There are also so many international students coming here … that was one thing that really prepared me for this experience and really opened my eyes, being able to interact with a lot of students who are coming in from East Asia to study and getting to have important conversations with them.”

Daniels heard about the scholarship program through a classmate, Tyler Kerr, who studied Portuguese in Brazil after being awarded the same scholarship. He was unsure about applying at first but sought help from Edna Udobong, Liberty’s liaison for the Fulbright Program and other international scholarship programs.

“I wrote up a draft of my application and sent it to her, and she helped me through all of it,” Daniels said. “She would send me back notes and edits and suggestions on how I could improve my essays on my application. It was very helpful.”

Daniels said his trip to Taiwan revealed the importance of exploring new environments and stepping out of his comfort zone. He urges more students to apply.

“I think a lot of people want to stay comfortable in their situations and maybe are afraid to talk to other people,” he said. “Don’t be afraid to put yourself out there to talk to new people, go to new places, and have new experiences in life.”