From Dahlonega to Taipei, Taiwan, a Cadet senior says her experience at a Taiwanese political warfare college was full of culture and new experiences.

Cassidy Hofer, a senior Cadet international affairs major with a minor in Chinese studied abroad in the spring semester of 2022 at Fu Hsing Kang National Defense College in Taipei, Taiwan.

Hofer says that her major requires study abroad experience. Her experience differs slightly from most who study abroad because she is in the Corps of Cadets at UNG.

She says, “I was able to participate in the cadet exchange with Fu Hsing Kang and get my study abroad credit filled as well as just study more about the language and culture.”

Hofer says the process of applying for study abroad in Taiwan was kind of complex, “I did have to fill out the CGE application, but the CGE application didn’t actually go to CGE. It went to Major Bowman, who is in charge of the military study abroad and he handles the military internships and Cadet exchanges.”

She continues, “Once Bowman approved me, I chose classes and then I had to get a letter from the Taiwanese government to actually be able to interact, as well as apply for my visa.”

In Taiwan, Hofer took the following courses: Arms Control and Disarmament, Intro to the Chinese Communist Party, Environmental Science, Politics from a Taiwanese point of view and Physical Education.

Hofer explains these classes were like nothing she had taken before, “I had never talked about the Non-Proliferation Treaty where we aren’t going to stop nuclear weapons and all my classes were in Chinese. So, I still have one of my textbooks with no English in it, only topics I had never approached before until this.”

Hofer explains that the language barrier did not stop her from learning, “My squad leader spoke English, so she helped a lot.”

She said her favorite memory of the trip would be when “I took the train that was five minutes from the school on our four-day weekend to Taichung which was the beach.”

Hofer says, “It was black sand beaches and they have this protected island that you could kind of look across and see. It was really pretty!”

Hofer recommends studying abroad and says her time in Taiwan will help her when she moves to Vietnam in October to teach English with the Peace Corps.

All photos courtesy of Cassidy Hofer