The Semiconductor School in NYCU: the Pioneer That Creates New Industry Cooperation for the Future

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HSINCHU, June 15, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- NYCU has the superior semiconductor research ecosystem with strong faculties, laboratories, industry partners, and a great international reputation that has attracted many international organizations to visit and exchange ideas. "Taiwan is well known for its prominent semiconductor industry, and NYCU has been a pioneer in nurturing semiconductor talents and entrepreneurs for over four decades.  Established in 2015, ICST has also made significant contributions to the industry." said Prof. Edward Chang, The Dean of the International College of Semiconductor Technology (ICST).

Echoes Jack Sun, the dean of the Industry Academia Innovation School (IAIS), and also the former Chief Technology Officer and R&D Vice-President of TSMC.  Dean Sun states that "the right combination of timing, location, and people", plus decades of innovation are the reasons why NYCU has become the leader for semiconductor research in Taiwan.

NYCU is located next to the Hsinchu Science Park, and has a deep rooted culture of focusing on innovation and breakthroughs. And IAIS, established in 2021, further connects ICST,  other colleges of NYCU,  (Science, Engineering, Electrical and Computer Engineering, Computer Science, Medicine, etc.)government institutes, and industry partners with a novel co-creation model to unleash the power of industry-academia co-innovation and accelerate the talent development for the world semiconductor industry.

Charting new frontiers for international collaboration and blueprints for the semiconductor industry

NYCU is proud of its excellent research and development strength in technology within the semiconductor industry. In addition to its long academic history and strong teaching and research momentum, NYCU is always connected to the latest developments in the global semiconductor industry. In this semiconductor blueprints endeavor of NYCU, both Dean Chang, and Dean Jack Sun, mentioned a key name, Dr. Chenming Hu.

"NYCU (formerly NCTU) has superior facilities and human resources, which is one key factor in connecting us with Dr. Hu."  Many years ago, Edward-Yi Chang visited Professor Chenming Hu at UC Berkeley (UCB) to initiate the UCB-NCTU collaboration project funded by industry, NCTU, and the Ministry of Science and Technology, i.e., the I-RiCE (International Research-intensive Centers of Excellence) project.  Since then, NYCU has introduced many international projects through Dr. Hu. Edward-Yi Chang, Jack Sun, and Chenming Hu have launched five-year research projects under the "SPROUT" Program of the Ministry of Education of Taiwan, which links the world's cutting-edge technology with academia in Taiwan.

To realize the digital economy enabled by semiconductors, Jack Sun: Foster co-creation with industry through the CCIC spirit and cross-domain co-innovation

As the demand for semiconductor talents in Taiwan is increasing significantly, making the cultivation of a sustainable workforce a crucial concern for many universities. Jack Sun believes that the saying: "It takes ten years to grow trees, a hundred years to nurture people". We strive to develop more cross-disciplinary talents, and focus on the development of top-notch talents to improve the overall quality continuously.

IAIS aims to develop well-rounded semiconductor talents by conducting top-notch research and integrating theoretical and practical courses, plus offering industry internship, international studies, and business management training. "Our approach is grounded in the CCIC spirit, which means we Connect, Collaborate, and Innovate across different domains to Create together." said Dean Jack Sun.

NYCU has decades of excellent track record in collaborating with the industry, which has indirectly incubated many domestic semiconductor start-up companies and led the development of forward-looking industries and emerging technologies. According to Dean Sun, "Our new industry-academia collaboration model is a two-way communication and collaboration between the school and the industry." Moreover, industry leaders like TSMC and MediaTek would go beyond just issuing problem statements and providing funding for the university to provide solutions or cultivate talents. NYCU/IAIS and industry partners will work hand in hand to jointly identify and work on new challenges and innovations in top-notch research and talent development, in order to create game-changing technologies, leading practical applications, and new high-value industries.

Jack Sun highlighted that the big trend is to empower the digital economy with semiconductors. It goes far beyond AI, zero-carbon green energy, metaverse/AR/VR, and XR applications, and digitalization with AI in various industries will all rely on semiconductors. Developing a "hardware (body) embedded with software (mind)" mindset, continuously mastering core technologies, and cultivating talents are the keys to NYCU's leadership in the semiconductor field and will provide great opportunities for the growth of the industries in Taiwan.

Internationally famous joint degree programs with ten countries. Edward-Yi Chang: Retain the world's talents and lead in competitions

Edward-Yi Chang is keenly aware of the importance of evolving recruitment strategies in line with changing times, ICST currently centers on creating a logistically and culturally inclusive environment for international talents seeking study and employment abroad. It has launched dual-degree programs with over 10 international science and engineering universities in the United States, Japan, Europe, India, and Turkey, etc. Hereafter, ICST is now exploring collaboration plans with countries in Southeast Asia such as Vietnam and Thailand, which aim to attract and retain top international talents in Taiwan, enhance domestic production and research capabilities, and further enhance the technology leadership.

NYCU creates its own differentiation, Edward-Yi Chang insists, "Compared to enterprises, the school is a more cost-effective platform for cultivating and retaining talents. ICST takes care of the needs of foreign students, and enterprises are naturally willing to sponsor such investment. Talents feel the warmth and a sense of belonging, and they are naturally willing to continue to work after graduation. This is a positive cycle."

In the next five-year plan, the two colleges join force to create a new environment for the symbiotic industry-academia ecosystem

"To promote NYCU to a top world-class level, its business strategy must be innovative and in line with the future trends," said Dean Edward Chang of ICST. "Our faculty team is highly effective in terms of execution and persuasion. Collaboration with various industry-university partners is even more powerful. Finding the right leadership, coupled with national policy support, will make NYCU a school with profound world-class influence."

NYCU provides an excellent platform for semiconductor industry-university research. The key to success is continuous top-notch talent development with an open source approach and a two-way co-creation model. IAIS has started setting up special research centers, and it will continue to collaborate with ICST to jointly carry out a second five-year "SPROUT" project, and work with other colleges in NYCU to achieve greater heights -- "ACT TOGETHER, WE GO FAR". NYCU hopes to open up a new era in Taiwan's semiconductor industry-university ecosystem for a sustainable semiconductor industry in the future.

SOURCE National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University NYCU