Development priorities and teaching specialties
Advanced molecular biology and various analytical techniques have created a breakthrough opportunity for forensic science. This discipline is the core of scientific investigation, including tasks mainly to analyze, identify, evaluate, and interpret evidence. The results can be used in legal proceedings in order to prove or overturn litigationrelated facts pending to be validated.Therefore, whether forensic scienceis well developed or not often determines the fairness, impartiality, efficiency andquality of the criminal legal proceedings. During criminal legal proceedings, the process carried out by professionals using scientific equipments, techniques and methods to conduct investigations and collect, analyze and identify evidence is called scientific investigation. Scientific investigation can reducethe high controversy of confessionsof suspects and testimony of eyewitness,dependency on evidence of low accuracy,and effective use of the evidence presented the most objective facts, in order to meet the goal of discovering the truth.

In recent years, due to the worldwide fame of the renowned international criminal forensicexpert Dr. Henry Chang-Yu Lee and broadcast of the extremely highly ratedU.S.television series CSI crime scene, forensic science has become quite popular. This discipline has been developed rapidly and successfully in foreign countries, and has laid a solid foundationboth in applications and academic area.

The scope of forensic science covers physics, chemistry, biology, psychologyand law related disciplines. General forensic methodsare mostly based on the principles ofphysics, chemistry and biology, evolving modern instruments and analysis. Another part of forensic science is designedby the foundation of psychology. Therefore, physics, chemistry, biology and psychology are important basis offorensic science. Law is the standard of forensic science. All methods and testsare subject to the legal standards.

For years, no matter in teaching or research, departments of the School of Science have developed with steady progress and are fully equipped with therequired theoretical studyand the capability of analysis techniques for forensic science. Owing to the increasing importance and trend of forensic science, departments of the School of Sciencehave offered forensic science courses based on the existing specialties of each department to introduce the importance of forensic science and its operation mode of criminal investigation. Classes are offered to strengthen students' professional knowledge, helping students, who are interested in choosing this line of profession, to have in depth understanding of forensic science.

The basic information of department
The curriculum planning of forensic science is mainly designed for the Department of Physics, Department of Chemistry, Department of Chemistry, Department of Microbiology, Department of Psychology of the School of Science, and combined with forensic science related courses offered by the School of Law. The curriculum planning is implemented initially by the Curriculum Committee of School of Science and is handed over to the Forensic Science Program Operations Team to invite scholars and expertsof the School of Law, internal and external relevant fields to jointly plan the required and elective courses.

Admission

Qualifications

- Currently enrolled students of Soochow Universityand major collegesof various academicsystems are qualified, including students of bachelor, master and doctoral programs, and studentstaking undergraduate courses.

- Students of Soochow University need to meet the school requirements of the limitation of school years.

- Students of other universities need to be permitted by the universities they are enrolled in prior to taking coursesat Soochow University.

Application Procedures

Students qualified for enrolling in the course shallprovide "course enrollment application form", "transcripts of past years",and "proof of cumulative percentage rank", to the Registration Division of Office of Academic Affairs (http://www .scu.edu.tw/reg/schedule.htm) within the specified time of applying the interdisciplinary programs according to the school calendar. The Office of Academic Affairs gathers all the applications and submits to the curriculum of forensic science for selection related process. 

 

Selection procedures

1. Appraisals of application materials will be conducted for the commitee to determine the admission list.    

2. The admission list will be submitted to the Office of Academic Affairs for unification announcement.

Proof of class completion

Students who complete the required courses and credits with passing grades, will receive course certificates of forensic science issued by the school.  

Contact

[Address]  Sun Memorial Hall, Room 305

70, Linhsi Rd., Shilin, Taipei, Taiwan, 111

Curriculum of Forensic Science, Soochow University

[Tel.] 886-2-2881-9471 extension 6654

[Website] http://www.scu.edu.tw/forensic/

[E-mail] forensic @scu.edu.tw