HCC graduate awarded scholarship to study in Taiwan
Jul 20, 2016
Houston Community College (HCC) graduate Arturo de Jesús Velázquez Cortés is heading to Taiwan in September for a year. He is the only HCC representative awarded this once-in-a- lifetime opportunity through The Education Division of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office (TECO) in Houston in conjunction with HCC-ASPIRE (Asian Scholarship Program Inspiring Results and Excellence).
The Ministry of Education (MOE) of the Republic of China (Taiwan) Huayu Enrichment Scholarship 2016-2017 will provide Cortés with 25,000 New Taiwan Dollars (TWD), which at the current rate, is nearly 800 USD every month to spend on classes and living. Cortés will take Mandarin Chinese language training and courses at Chinese language institutes affiliated with universities or colleges in the Republic of China (Taiwan).
“The scholarship makes me believe I am doing the right thing with my life,” said Cortés. “With the financial support I will be able to pay for my courses and do some exploration trips all around the country. It will be a year of explorations.”
Cortés attended the HCC Eastside Campus and recently received an Associate of Science in Engineering Science (ASES) with a 3.9 GPA. During his time at HCC, Cortés served as a math/science tutor, Vice-President of the Health Club, and helped established the first Engineering Student organization at Eastside. In 2015 he received an invitation to participate in the International Air and Space Program and his team, Hybrid Inc., won first place.
Cortés is looking forward to this latest adventure in Taiwan which will allow him to immerse himself entirely in the local culture and traditions.
“I want to live around the world and interact with people different from me to gain new ways of thinking and learning, so I will become a more complete and prepared person,” he said. “I never imagined moving to the other side of the world by myself for a year. This is an incredible opportunity.”
When he returns from Taiwan, Cortés plans to attend the University of Texas at Austin to pursue a Bachelor’s Degree in Biomedical Engineering.