By Christina Kang Yong Xin
The 12th PharmSci@Asia Symposium with the Chinese University of Hong Kong
The AAPS Student Chapter at the National University of Singapore (NUS) aims to increase student awareness of career opportunities and latest advances and discoveries in the pharmaceutical sciences, as well as provide students interested in the pharmaceutical sciences with opportunities for professional and leadership development.
Last year, we co-organized the 12th PharmSci@Asia Symposium with the School of Pharmacy at Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) with the theme of Innovating Pharmaceutical Sciences, Advancing Health Care. It was an exciting platform where a total of 85 delegates from different countries came together to discuss their research work and exchange insightful pointers. The research presented covered a multidisciplinary breadth of pharmaceutical chemistry, biomedical science, pharmaceutical technology, and pharmacy practice. There were talks by faculty speakers, podium presentations by students, poster presentations and viewing, as well as a tour of the research facilities at the CUHK School of Pharmacy. This two-day scientific exchange displayed a strong emphasis on scientific fundamentals while highlighting the importance of making progress through continuous innovation. Participants benefited greatly from the exchange of new ideas, updates in the field and networking opportunities.
We had the honor of inviting Yuichi Sugiyama, Ph.D., of Sugiyama Laboratory at the University of Tokyo as a distinguished speaker for the AAPS Visiting Scientist Program under the PPDM section education initiative. Sugiyama delivered a scientific presentation at the event, which included a guided and interactive tour of the Laboratory for Experimental and Applied Pharmacokinetics and Pharmaco-omics of NUS Pharmacy, four research presentations by pharmacy postgraduates and ended with an afternoon tea career development talk for postgraduate students. Students and faculty members were inspired by Sugiyama’s unwavering passion toward science, the main factor he attributes to for his immensely successful position today.
Yuichi Sugiyama, Ph.D., our Visiting Scientist
We also recently concluded our grant writing workshop for graduate students, which was very informative, especially for budding researchers. Andrea Kwa, Pharm.D., of Duke-NUS Medical School walked the audience through the details of grant applications for grant agencies in Singapore, while Victor Yu, Ph.D., of the NUS Department of Pharmacy shared his valuable experience with writing and reviewing grants. An insight into the grant review process helped students look on the other side of the coin.
Moving forward, we look forward to an eventful year with industrial visits and career talks in the pipeline, which have been well received from past experiences. As a chapter for students, by students, we hope to continue enriching the professional development of students through organizing meaningful events that provide useful insights as well as networking opportunities for students.
The NUS student committee