Off-Campus Housing and Accommodations near NCCU (National Chengchi University 國立政治大學)

If you are an international student at National Chengchi University (NCCU), then you may be wondering about where to find off-campus housing or accommodations near NCCU in Taipei. This post is to help you decide the best area to live in Taipei for NCCU students.

Where is NCCU located?

NCCU’s campus in located in the Wenshan District (文山區, Wénshān Qū) of Taipei City. It is in the southern part of Taipei City. The closest MRT station is the Taipei Zoo MRT Station on the Brown Line and you will have to walk approximately 20 minutes from the MRT station to reach the NCCU campus. There are frequent buses that run between the NCCU campus and the Taipei Zoo MRT Station.

The bus is the most convenient form of transportation for NCCU students. There are many buses that can take you from the NCCU campus to other areas of Taipei.

NCCU Campus

The NCCU campus is split into two sections. Most of the main buildings are located in the lower campus. The buildings located in the lower campus include the College of Commerce, College of General Studies, College of International Affairs, College of Education, the Administration Building, the Computer Lab, the Cafeteria, the Gym, and the main Library. The upper campus includes the Chinese and Foreign Language Center, the College of Communication, and the Art & Culture Center.


How do I get to NCCU?

There are frequent buses during the day that take you from NCCU to nearly every other part of Taipei City, but the bus ride can take some time (approximately 30 minutes). The closest MRT station is the Taipei Zoo MRT station on the Brown line, which is a smaller, slower MRT line compared to other MRT lines in Taipei. You will need to take a bus from the Taipei Zoo MRT station to the NCCU campus, which takes about 5-10 minutes (or you can walk for 20 minutes). Most of the bus stations are right across the street from the NCCU campus.

NCCU Bus Station

NCCU Bus Station

Where do NCCU International Students live in Taipei?

Most NCCU international students choose to live in areas in Taipei that are closer to the city center. This makes sense because it allows you to most efficiently use your time to explore Taipei and other areas in Taiwan.

Here are the three most popular areas in Taipei for NCCU international students:

  1. Next to NCCU. There are many small restaurants, convenient stores and supermarkets right next to the NCCU campus. This area is also quieter and much more residential then other parts of Taipei. However, you will be far from the city center. You will need to take a bus or MRT for approximately 30 minutes to get the center of Taipei. Other than NCCU’s iHouse, there are not a lot of short-term rentals available near NCCU. Most of the rentals near NCCU require one-year lease.

  2. Green MRT Line: Gongguan MRT Station, Taipower Building MRT Station and Guting MRT Station. These MRT stations are all on Roosevelt Road where you can take a direct bus (Bus 236) to NCCU in about 30 minutes. This is usually one of the most popular areas for NCCU students. It’s a dynamic area with a lot of students from other big universities (NTU and NTNU). Perfect to meet a lot of people.

  3. Brown MRT Line: Lingguang MRT Station, Liuzhangli MRT Station, Technology Building MRT Station and Da’an MRT Station. This area is very international too and slightly more expensive. You can take the MRT to the Taipei Zoo and then transfer to a direct bus to NCCU (Bus BR6, BR11, BR18, 282, 611, 676). You can also take the 295 Bus from the Technology Building to the NCCU campus. The travel time by metro is longer than it looks like on the map.

Our personal favorite is the area near Gongguan, Taipower Building and Guting. You are on the Green MRT Line, which is a very convenient line for getting around Taipei. If you are an international student staying in Taipei for only 3-5 months, then you will probably want to live closer to the city center and explore the rest of Taipei as much as possible.

How to Find Housing and Accommodations near NCCU?

If you want to live next to NCCU, then the first option you can consider is the NCCU International House (NCCU iHouse), which is next to the NCCU campus and easy walking distance to NCCU’s main gate. The NCCU iHouse is a residential dormitory for international students and visiting scholars. The NCCU iHouse has a 24-hour front desk and 65 single rooms and 30 double rooms. There are conference rooms and a café on the ground floor, along with common rooms and lounges on the first, second, fourth and seventh floors. See the NCCU iHouse Website for more information.


Other than NCCU’s iHouse, it may be difficult to find short-term rentals near NCCU since there are not much short-term accommodations near NCCU campus. Most short-term accommodations near NCCU will be in Muzha or other areas in the Wenshan District.

You can check various Facebook groups for short-term rentals near NCCU. You can also ask your NCCU “buddy” (via the NCCU Buddy Program) for recommendations on where to live in Taipei. Many local Taiwanese use the 591 Rental website to look for apartments in Taipei, but this website is not in English and many of the apartments on the website require a minimum rental of 1 year, which is not suitable for exchange students only staying 3-5 months.

You can also search for short-term rentals in Taipei on the My Room Abroad website, which has hundreds of accommodations in Taipei near Gongguan, Taipower Building, and Guting on the Green MRT line and Daan, Technology Building, Liuzhangli and Lingguang on the Brown MRT line.

Many of the accommodations on the My Room Abroad website are studios and rooms in shared apartments, where you can live with other exchange students or language students visiting Taiwan. To learn more about the benefits of coliving and shared apartments in Taipei, please read this article.