Abstract
Purpose: The purpose of this study was to describe experiences of university life from Taiwanese good-quality university students' perspectives. Methods: Through a snow-ball method, ten senior students from a small-sized university in Taiwan were invited to describe their experiences at a university. Participants averaged 21.30 years old. In-depth interviews and a phenomenological qualitative analysis were adopted to collect and analyze data. Psychosocial developmental theory by Chickering and Reisser (1993) served as the reference framework of this study. Results: Important findings of this study included that good-quality university students (1) revealed a sense of mission and responsibility, (2) optimized the opportunities of contacts and learned through pluralistic experiences, (3) comprehended the importance of and enjoyed the achievement of cooperation in groups, (4) understood the importance of interpersonal communication and enhanced their interpersonal competence, (5) inserted self-development as the main theme of their lives, and (6) learned from role models. Conclusion: Good-quality Taiwanese university students inserted self-development as the main theme of their lives and enhanced self-efficacy through participating in their own interests, developing a sense of mission and responsibility, utilizing cooperation in small-groups, and building diverse contacts and pluralistic experiences. Participants identified their university career as a crucial stage of development in life.