Jenny (Jie Wei) Zhu

Home Institute: McMaster University
Supervisor: Mohammad Akbari

I was born in Shijiazhuang, China and immigrated to Canada when I was 6 years old and have lived in the GTA ever since. I am currently a third year student at McMaster University, in the Bachelor of Health Sciences program. I am interested in the field of oncology as a possible future career path, and want to expand upon my previous clinical research experience by learning more about the current cutting-edge laboratory research being conducted that is advancing the field.

I am excited to be able to finally apply the laboratory skills learned throughout my undergraduate lab courses and to learn more skills and techniques from experienced mentors to further develop and refine them. I'm really looking forward to learning more about the process in which laboratory research is conducted, as well as gaining more exposure to the field of oncology research in general by delving more deeply into the specific biochemical, genetic or molecular processes of such a vast and complex disease. Lastly, I am extremely excited to be able to work under the guidance of an expert in the field of oncology research and gain more knowledge about his/her field of research, in addition to the soft skills that are conducive to conducting quality laboratory research.

I think the Amgen Scholars Program will be an excellent opportunity for me because it will not only help me to build a stronger foundation of scientific knowledge, but also provide me with invaluable insight and experience into the field of oncology that perfectly complements my current research and prospective career interests. I also highly value the opportunity to be able to meet currently established researchers in the field, as well as the social networking opportunities to meet like-minded peers.