The newly established Tamkang Quality Award will start taking applications from the 2006 academic year. The Award is set up to raise the overall quality of education and services at Tamkang University by encouraging the research, promotion, and execution of total quality management.

The Tamkang Quality Award will be given to organizational units, rather than individuals, that carry out total quality management with distinction. Application is open from October 1 to 31. Each year a primary unit (offices and colleges) may recommend one of its subordinate units for the Award. Applications will be reviewed by the Tamkang Quality Award review panel, which will present to the President a list of candidates that pass the two stages of review. After the approval of the President, each of the successful units will be awarded NT$150,000, plus a certificate and a trophy, and publicly commended at the end-of-year celebration party.

The review panel will consist of experts from both within the University and outside so as to guarantee transparency and credibility of the review process. There are seven criteria for the Award: concept communication, invention and strategy management, information application and management, process management, customer satisfaction, human resource development, and whole organization performance. The panel will assess the applications according to these seven criteria. A score of 75 and above at the first stage of documents assessment will qualify the candidates for the second stage of review, when the panel will go and see for themselves how the applying units work. The Award will be given to candidates scoring 85 and above. The Tamkang Quality Award is set up to introduce to the educational and administrative services of the University the industries’ ideas and practices of total quality management, customer orientation, and process reorganization. ( Hui-chuan Wang )