Jolynn Ong
Nationality: Singapore
Faculty & Year of Study: Cancer Science Institute of Singapore, Year 3
Undergraduate: University of Edinburgh, United Kingdom
"Celebrate the little victories!"
What challenges have you faced during your stint as a PhD student?
I think most graduate students would agree that doing a PhD requires huge amounts of self-motivation and discipline. One major challenge is definitely to strike a balance between work and play! During the first few months of PhD, I often found myself mentally burnt out from all the new information and work received; however I’ve learnt (and am still learning) to pace myself in this long PhD journey.
Can you tell us something fun about your PhD journey in NUS?
I am very grateful to be part of a fun-loving and lively lab under Dr Takaomi Sanda at Cancer Science Institute! It is the main reason why my graduate journey in NUS has been so enjoyable and I appreciate the camaraderie built among all my colleagues! We went on an overseas holiday trip to Thailand where we toured the main city and ate lots of good food! Recently, due to the COVID-19 situation, we switched to playing online games together as an alternative form of relaxation.
Any other words of wisdom to share?
Celebrate the little victories!