The University course program consists of teaching modules with a major relevance to the semiconductor industry and will be held virtually between February 19th and the end of the month of each year. As of March 1st, the course program will mandatorily continue in presence in Taiwan. Thus, the program intents to reconcile the Taiwan start of spring semester on February 14th and the German exam period, which usually lasts until the end of February.
Participants may arrive in Taiwan on two possible dates: either February 15th or March 1st, depending on their individual situation.

The contents of the study program will be published on this page as soon as they have been determined.

Optionally and if of interest, a Mandarin course (6 ECTS) can be taken in the evening, twice a week for three hours each time.

After completion of the university course program approx. middle of June of each year, the students will proceed with the two-month practical training between middle of June till middle of August at TSMC in their Newcomer Training Center & Fab at TSMC in Taichung.

Application Process:

01.05.2024 – 31.05.2024	Application period
01.06.2024 – 24.08.2024	Selection process
from 25.08.2024	Announcement of positive application results (list of participants/ reserve candidates)
WS 2024/2025	Introduction into the Chinese language (Mandarin)
n.n.	Intercultural training

 Stay abroad 2025:

until end of September 2024	all funding agreements are fully signed
until end of October 2024	transfer of payments to beneficiaries has been conducted
from middle of November 2024	enrollment into the Taiwan host university
15.02.2025	1st  arrival date
Mid-February till the end of the month 2025	virtual courses (=mandatory) These courses can be joined from Germany or already in Taiwan.
	Important: If you cannot guarantee your partaking in these online modules during your examination period, you’ll need to be excluded from participation in the STIPT program.
01.03.2025	2nd arrival date
03.03. – 06.06.2025	Classroom courses at NTU
Mid June to mid-August 2025	Internship at TSMC

STIPT targets students from the participating Saxon universities enrolled in the following majors only:

• From third year of a BA program on*
• Any semester of MA program*
• Diploma students who have finished half of their study period*

*Please note:
For the duration of the complete internship, all participants must be enrolled at a Saxon university.
Only full time degrees
Only degree seeking students

The program focusses on natural sciences and engineering in the following fields:

• Electrical Engineering
• Microelectronics
• Nanoelectronics
• Materials science
• Computer science
• Physics
• Chemistry
• Mathematics

All application material shall be submitted to LEONARDO OFFICE SAXONY using the “Mobility Online” application platform.

The following documents will be needed:

• Application form
• Curriculum vitae in English
• Letter of motivation (max. 2 pages, in English)
• Proof of academic achievements/transcript of records of current studies
• if applicable Bachelor’s degree certificate/ Pre-Diploma
• Proof of English language skills level of at least B2 according to CEFR (= Common European Framework of Reference for Languages) not older than two years

Additionally you can submit:

• References of practical experience if proving experience in the field of semiconductor industry
• Language skills in Mandarin

Feel free to consult LEONARDO OFFICE SAXONY.

The selection of students will be completed by August 24th, 2024.

The selection process will be carried out as follows:

• Assessment of completeness and validity of the submitted application documents (LEOSACHSEN)
• General aptitude check based on existing files (LEOSACHSEN and Dr. Josef Goldberger)
• Focus related assessment and ranking of the applications (representatives of the home university in Saxony)
• Evaluation of the resulting list of possible participants and reserve candidates by the Taiwanese universities and TSMC
• Approval of the list of participants and reserve candidates by the project committee

The selection criteria are the following:

• Completeness of the application documents and validity of information
• Enrollment at an eligible Saxon university, in the specified fields of study, degrees and semesters
• English language of minimum level B2 proven
• Average achievement of at least 2.3 (German Average)
• Comprehensible motivation for particpation in the program and the specialized education in the field of semiconductor industry

If the number of applicants exceeds the maximum number of participants, the following criteria will be applied:

• Higher academic year/semester
• Intensive focus on the subject of this program to be found in the students’ previous studies
• Higher performance in the previous studies
• Better language skills in English
• previous internship experience related to the semiconductor industry

Academic Recognition:
In total, up to 30 ECTS credits can be awarded through the course program at the Taiwanese university. The internship at TSMC is a mandatory part of the program and can be completed with 4 ECTS credits. The determinations of how to complete the course program for the purpose of obtaining ECTS credits is the responsibility of the faculties of the selected students.

Financial support:
In addition to the respective tuition and program fees of the participating Taiwanese universities, the selected students will receive the following financial support through STIPT for their stay abroad:

• 700 € per month as a grant for living allowance and
• 1,500 € as a grant for travel expenses

The first installment will be 90% of the total grant amount (upon full signature of the subsidy agreement) and 10% (after reviewing the completeness of the final documents).

Intercultural Training:
Detailed information about the program’s intercultural training will be available shortly.

Language Training:
The Mandarin language courses offered by the home universities can be used to prepare for the stay abroad in Taiwan. The Westsächsische Hochschule Zwickau opens their language training courses to participants from other Saxon universities as well.

Subsidy Agreement:
The selected students will receive a subsidy agreement by LEONARDO OFFICE SAXONY. This agreement specifies the chosen academic contents of the course of study and the practical training, all rights and obligations of the contracting parties, the insurance regulations as well as the financial support via STIPT.

Accommodation:
Accommodation in Taiwan will be pre-arranged by Taiwan partner universities. The cost of accommodation is to be paid by the students themselves. The programs’ living allowance can be used for that.
Accommodation needs to be changed once:

• While studying at one of the host universities, the participants will live in a university dormitory.
• Throughout the internship period at TSMC, the participants will be accommodated in a dormitory in Taichung.

Please note: Even though the travel to Taiwan may not be possible until March 01, the rental fee for the dormitory has to be paid already from the middle of February.

Insurance:
Participants will benefit from their host universities’ health insurance. This insurance includes not only their time of study, but also leisure time during the entire time of their stay in Taiwan and the internship period at TSMC. Excluded is a possible touristic stay following the program.
Participants of this program should take out their own personal insurance to cover the risks inherent to their journey and stay (accidant and liability insurance). Additional insurance may be adviseable.

Visa:
The visa process is going to be prepared and initiated by the host university in Taiwan in cooperation with the student following the students’ enrollment. A proof of the participation in the program and the financial funding will be issued by the LEONARDO OFFICE SAXONY to support this whole process.

By applying to the STIPT program, you voluntarily provide us with your personal data. The data collection associated with the application can be objected to until the start of the mobility abroad. In this case participation in the STIPT program is not possible anymore.

The collected data will be processed by LEONARDO-OFFICE SAXONY exclusively for the purpose of the implementation of the project and mobility.
In the course of a mobility process, the following parties will be granted access to the necessary data:

• International Office of the TU Dresden
• Universities in Taiwan and home university in Saxony
• TSMC
• Members of the committee of the STIPT program
• Saxon State Ministry for Science and Art (SMWK)
• Department 1 of the TU Dresden (Finances and Procurement)

Data will not be passed on to third parties outside the partners mentioned here, or only after obtaining your written consent.
If you are not nominated (directly after the selection process or as a reserve candidate), your data will be deleted after five months latest.
The personal data of the participating students will be kept for a maximum of 10 years after the completion of the project in accordance with the law for audit purposes, i.e. to prove the legitimate use of the funding, after which it will be deleted.

Your data is stored secured from unauthorized access on the server of the service provider Mobility Online (SOP) and at the TU Dresden’s server at the Center for Information Services and High Performance Computing. Apart from this, there is no exchange of personal data.

Otherwise, the privacy policy in the imprint of the TU Dresden website applies. 

As an applicant or participant of STIPT, you can complain to report shortcomings in the application process or in the preparation, implementation or evaluation of the STIPT stay abroad. In the clarification process, the respective persons/ institutions concerned will be engaged to resolve the matter.

Contact person:
Ms. Katharina Gabel-Stransky,
Head of the LEONARDO OFFICE SAXONY
international.leosachsen@tu-dresden.de
If the problem is not solved in a satisfactory manner, you may contact the TU Dresden Rectorate.

Contact person:
Prof. Dr. Ronald Tetzlaff
Chief Officer Technology Transfer and Internationalization
ctio@tu-dresden.de

Please inform LEONARDO OFFICE SAXONY about the following information needed for the implementation of the project and your stay abroad (including the evaluation):

• Proof of visa/ work permit before starting the internship (via “Mobility Online”),
• Change of the emergency contact person’s details (via “Mobility Online”),
• Change of home and study address,
• written information in case of problems that may compromise the successful stay abroad in Taiwan in both phases (course program and internship) or lead to an early termination of the relevant project phase (illness, family emergencies, objective events in the home or host country).

The information on the closing documents will be available shortly here.