Wanqing Jiang: international student profile

Wanqing Jiang joined The University of Manchester from China and has found her time in the first two years of her BSc in Pharmacology with Industrial Experience to be engaging and inspiring. She is shortly due to commence her one-year industrial placement, which is an integrated part of her degree, and is looking forward to developing her passion for her subject area further while experiencing a real-life working lab environment.

Wanqing Jiang

“My academic school has a global reputation, with the academic staff being involved in cutting-edge research. They are very enthusiastic about their field, and their broad knowledge is well reflected in their teaching – and so it greatly influences us students. Studying pharmacology has really built up not only my knowledge but also my interest in this area, and I must credit this to the excellent staff. Our lecturers are so ready to help students.

“One of my favourite modules so far has been in clinical drug development. This is strongly related to my course and future career. It involves different teaching strategies; apart from lectures and online assessments, the lecturer also designed a game which mimics the real drug-development processes.

“The best thing about studying at Manchester is that I’ve had the chance to meet so many excellent lecturers and students. It has made me more passionate about my course and I’ll bring this passion to my future career. I think this is the most important thing, as this will always support me, allow me to absorb new knowledge, and help equip myself for my future.

“What I like about Manchester is that it’s a big city that’s convenient to explore – with public transport including buses, trains, trams and planes. It’s easy for international students to travel to the University, and also around the city and across the UK. The Chinatown in Manchester is also the second largest in the UK, providing a variety of choices for Asian food.  

“I’m still not really clear about what I want to do after graduation, but I will find out after my placement year. This one-year experience will definitely give me a better understanding of pharmaceutical companies and help me find out if I really like and am suitable for lab-based research. What the university has given us is not only the academic knowledge but also other transferable skills- for example, teamwork, communication, problem solving and so on. It also provides a good environment for study, cultural exchange and social networking. I guess it will benefit my future a lot.”