Sustainable Recruitment Strategies in Technological and Vocational Education: Admission Scores and Enrollment Challenges under Taiwan’s Joint Registration and Distribution System

Abstract

This study investigates enrollment trends in Taiwan’s technological and vocational colleges under the Joint Registration and Distribution (JRD) System, comparing national and private institutions and analyzing school and department changes from 2021 to 2024. Results indicate that some private institutions opt out of JRD admissions, reflecting both enrollment challenges and strategic flexibility. The emergence of new disciplines has led to notable shifts in application-to-admission ratios. While most national institutions maintain near-full enrollment, only four private institutions achieve similar results. Departmental shifts in admission groups reduced vacancies in 37.3% of cases, but premature changes had limited impact, highlighting recruitment complexities. An analysis of historical admission scores shows that 85% of national and 3.8% of private institutions have over half of their programs ranking in the top 50%. To stabilize first-year enrollment, institutions should closely monitor admission trends and adjust recruitment strategies accordingly