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Dear Ph.D. students,

I trust that by now you have taken advantage of the advanced facilities and abundant resources in Academia Sinica and are making appropriate progress toward your Ph.D. degree. While we appreciate your self-motivated effort, we recognize the relatively low Ph.D. stipend and the increasing cost of living in Taipei. According to our survey, the Ph.D. stipend in Academia Sinica varies depending on the program and the individual group, and the average is NTD 34,000 per month.  To help you defray the living expenses, we have decided to raise the average Ph.D. stipend for students who are on Academia Sinica payroll.

As of September this year, your advisor has an opportunity to recommend you for a supplemental stipend of NTD 6,000 per month if you are within the first two years of your Ph.D. study, or 16,000 if you are in your third to fifth year and have passed the qualifying exam.  With such an increase, we hope to raise the average Ph.D. stipend to 40,000 per month for the first two years and 50,000 for years 3-5.  If you have not passed the qualifying exam, you will have to wait until you pass the exam before being eligible for the 16,000 supplemental stipend, even if you have enrolled as a Ph.D. student for more than two years.  There are some exceptions that may apply, as explained on the DIA website. To encourage you to finish the Ph.D. degree within 5 years, our supplemental stipend will cease after your fifth year in our program.

We hope that the supplemental stipend will further incentivize you to make even greater and more focused effort toward you Ph.D. degree. 

Sincerely,

James Liao
President 
Academia Sinica