Jie Tang

Can you tell us about your PhD?

I am finding out how we can better deliver drugs to cancer patients. I am learning how to create nanoparticles with the cancer drug inside. The blood vessels around cancers are leaky, and the hope is that the nanoparticles will fit through these holes, but not leak out in areas where there is healthy tissue.

My PhD is in three stages. Firstly I created the particle with the cancer drug inside. Then I attached a patch that will help the drug enter the body. Finally, we used what we had learnt so far to adjust the drug doses to increase the chance of it working in the right way.

Why is this research important?

Too often, healthy tissues in cancer patients are damaged by cancer treatments, which leads to serious side effects. If this technique works, we should be able to better target drugs to the cancer, sparing healthy tissue and reducing side effects.

Why did you choose King’s to do your PhD?

The UK is a very popular country for Chinese students. I had two UK universities to choose from to do my PhD. 

King’s also encourages you to do things outside your PhD, beyond publishing papers, and I liked that. It is common for PhD students to come to the UK and publish papers and go home without making friends, not getting any soft skills, but it isn’t like that here.

While I have been here, I have made different friends, broadened my horizons, and become more laid back about my expectations of myself. This helps you be more comfortable when something in your PhD doesn’t work out as expected, and it helps you be happier.

What did you do before your PhD?

I finished my master’s in China, graduating from Peking University. I had been working with nanoparticles and cancer cells in that project too. I applied for an international student scholarship and met a King’s academic at a conference. She put me in touch with my future supervisor. Attending conferences is always such a good thing to do and I found my next job there.

How have you brought together Chinese PhD students at King’s?

I like meeting and getting to know people, but as an international student, it can be easy to get isolated from both your fellow students and also wider society.

There are more than 4,000 Chinese students at King’s, which is a huge group. I set up the China Dragon Forum to bring us together, to help us benefit more from UK society, and to help get our voices heard.

We have run many different events. For example, we have taught people how to communicate with their supervisor, which is often a barrier to international students. We have also run careers events to help international students find jobs in the UK.

Having a good social life is also really important, so we have run fun events such as a karaoke night and a summer picnic.

What impact do you think the China Dragon Forum has had?

I think one of its biggest impact has been to help postgraduate students overcome some of the barriers that international students face. For example, during their daily work, an international student might think it is their fault if they don’t understand something, or think they don’t understand it because of the language barrier, or feel too shy to ask a question. These are all barriers that we can face which impact on our ability to learn and network with others.

The work of the China Dragon Forum is so important. I am pleased to say I have found someone to take over and organise the events after I have finished my PhD.

What events a have you attended at King’s?

There are lots of events and activities at King’s. This was especially important to me in my first year when I moved to London and the UK was in lockdown. I had to stay home alone for a long time and it was so hard. I kept myself busy by competing in the Three Minute Thesis Competition – I prepared and practiced online with my supervisor and colleagues and even got to the grand final.

Have you attended any training during your PhD?

I attended so many courses in my first two years, and I really enjoyed those I selected. ‘Seven Secrets for Highly Successful PhDs’ was one of my favourites, and I even contacted the trainer and he ran a modified course for international students. The other one I loved was ‘Negotiation Skills’.

What would you like to do next in your career and how has King’s supported this?

I would like to go back to China to find a job in industry. I want to use the soft skills I developed during my PhD. I may also look for positions in the UK.

I have benefited from careers advice on many different topics. I went to seminars that King’s Careers & Employability organised. I also worked with the Careers team to organise events specifically for Chinese students, and they are now giving more specific career advice for Chinese students.

What would be your advice to someone starting a PhD now?

Do things outside of your PhD. Some people don’t want to do anything unrelated to their research publications. Yes, papers are good, but have you got other skills? Can you communicate with your team? Are you a team player? UK society values this and when you finish your PhD you will realise that it is the things unrelated to science that help you find a job.

Have you had challenges during your PhD?

When you start a PhD, you have a clear idea in your mind of how it will go, but things don’t always go to plan.

This happened to me – in my third year, my supervisor and I realised that I was not getting good results, and it was not what we expected to happen. It was hard to know what to do, but then we decided to write about the negative results. A negative result is still an important result, and it can help someone else avoid doing the same thing. We also applied for a six-month extension.

What advice would you give to someone else who is not getting results in their PhD?

I would say: reach out, talk to friends and talk to colleagues, because you are not alone. It is hard because, in reality, those who have struggled the most often find it the hardest to reach out. But that makes it even more important for them to talk to people.

Have you had support through your PhD?

My supervisor is amazing. When I met his colleague at the conference, she told me that my supervisor always tries to make everyone in his research group happy. That seemed different from my master’s in China, where there was a lot of pressure. I was almost shocked – I wondered if a supervisor like that would be possible? It was one of the reasons I got in touch with him – because your boss influences your happiness in a job.