Living Allowance Meal Plan: A Long-term Programme Addressing Student Food Insecurity
To address student food insecurity and ensure students have reliable access to sufficient, affordable and nutritious food, NTU has established a long-term meal support programme for financially disadvantaged students.
The initiative was first launched in 2015 under the NTU Hope Meal Programme, which provided free on-campus meals for students from low-income households and those facing special circumstances. The programme was designed to ensure that students experiencing financial hardship could meet their basic nutritional needs and continue their studies without concerns about daily meals.
In 2019, the programme was expanded and renamed the Living Allowance Meal Plan. Eligibility was broadened to include not only students from low-income, lower-middle-income and special-circumstance households, but also students experiencing unexpected financial hardship, such as those whose families encounter major emergencies or who face serious illness or injury during their studies. Students with demonstrated financial need are eligible for support following review by the university.
The monthly meal allowance has progressively increased from NT$3,000 to NT$5,000. Through a partnership with a mobile payment provider, the allowance is automatically credited to each recipient's electronic payment account and can be used across all participating food service facilities on campus, including dining outlets, convenience stores and campus shops, ensuring convenient, reliable and continuous access to food throughout the semester.
The programme is available every semester as a regular student support scheme. It is administered by the Office of Student Affairs and funded through the university's annual budget, demonstrating NTU's long-term institutional commitment to addressing student food insecurity through continuous intervention rather than one-off assistance. More than 400 students benefit from the programme each semester, reducing financial barriers to food and ensuring continued access to affordable and nutritious meals throughout their studies.
