Chuhan (Sonya) completed her summer research internship in the group.

Written by Chuhan (Sonya) as a farewell note to the research group.

Stepping out into the bustle and hustle of Beijing outside Wudaokou railway station, the sheer scale of Tsinghua University immediately struck me. Coming from the ancient streets of Oxford, where its building aged back into the 14 centuries, the modern design of Tsinghua campus was definitely bringing me to something different.

Not to my surprise, 8 weeks of summer research internship at the Jiao research group were indeed enough to unravel the “differences” hidden within this campus.

For instance, it was not hard to identify that food here in most dining halls such as Zijing and Zhilan were found especially pleasing, unlike the English dishes at christ church college where I had being living for the last two years. On the other hand, people here all seemed to still obtain the innocence and idealism as a student as Tsinghua has a closed campus unlike Oxford which is more of a “city” school. Furthermore, if I was totally honest with myself, time flied so quickly here at Tsinghua, compared with the almost everlasting 2 months at Oxford. One major reason was undoubtedly the inclusivity that everyone in Jiao’s group embodied - they always answered my questions with patience and kindness, no matter how far-fetched they might have seemed.

Whilst differences sparked out like fireworks, the similarities also started to reveal their edges.

During the last 2 months, I worked on a project related to the study of PCET mechanism, which was proposed by Yuqi Tang, a follow PhD student in the group. It didn’t took me long to realize that he also possessed multiple qualities that where found common on my tutors and classmates back at Christ Church college.

He always emphasised his passion in the field of mechanistic study and revealed strong desire to assist youngsters in understanding the deeper mechanistic drivers behind simple chemical reactions. In addition, despite his numerous achievements, he thoughtfully considered my ideas and suggestions, which made me feel deeply respected. Just when I thought this was an isolated case, I realized after a brief interaction many others in the group were genuinely willing to discuss their research interest and academic experiences with others. This made me feel deeply included and even accommodated.

At the same time, Professor Jiao’s rigor and dedication to scientific research felt very familiar - it strongly reminded me of my tutors at Christ Church College. It also made me realize, almost instinctively, that those who succeed in research share extremely common traits. Moreover, Professor Jiao was very supportive of me, which greatly enhanced my learning during my time there. He also encouraged me to socialize and communicate as much as possible with others in the group - an unexpected yet caring gesture.

As a result of all the warmth I felt, leaving Beijing was especially harder than I had anticipated. This internship was a lot more that just participating in part of a project and glimpsing closely at the life of a PhD student, but more of a chance to build strong connection with many highly competent and talented people across the ocean. Even to my surprise, I realized almost immediately that my determination and passion for Organic Chemistry was ignited to its maximum limit after this time.

Last but not least, I want to convey my highest gratitude to Professor Jiao and all members of his group for the unforgettable summer.

Yet a farewell and forever-well, I am sure our path will cross again.