Taiwan Air Force Staff Sgt. Jiang Pin-shiuan's pitch to freshmen at Taipei's Tamkang University seemed compelling: join the island's armed forces and get a state-sponsored degree, 110 days of leave each year and annual savings of 312,500 New Taiwan dollars ($10,200).
But many students who were listening showed little interest, arguing national service was a "waste of time" and prospects of the self-ruled island standing up economically or militarily to an increasingly aggressive China were slim.
"China could simply crush Taiwan with its economic power. There's no need for a war, which wastes money," said 18-year-old Chen Fang-yi, an engineering major. "I do not have much confidence and expectation for the national army."