Ebenezeri Erasto Ngowi, Master student of Grade 2019, Henan International Joint Laboratory for Nucleoprotein Regulation, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Henan University

Each year thousands of students from African countries are enrolled to pursue further studies in various fields in China. I, Ebenezeri Erasto Ngowi, have been among the students who got the opportunity to undertake master’s degree in this beautiful country. Here I will share my experience as an African youth on pursuing my dream in China.

1. My background

My passion in science started when I was a child, and it increased as I was getting progressing from one education level to another. In high school I majored in Physics, Chemistry, and Biology. After two hard years in high school, I successively joined the University of Dar es Salaam (UDSM) in Tanzania to undertake the bachelor degree, majoring in Chemistry and Biology. After completing my bachelor degree, I worked as a tutorial assistant in animal physiologys at the Dar es Salaam University College of Education. While working, I applied to undertake further studies in universities in various countries. Finally, I was able to secure a master degree position at Henan university (HENU) to pursue MSc. In Biochemistry and Molecular Biology on university scholarship. Soon after arriving at HENU, I was introduced to the School of Basic Medical Sciences for my coursework, and later I joined the Kaifeng Municipal Key Laboratory of Cell Signal Transduction for practical lessons and carried out my project. In the lab, I met amazing teachers, Chinese students and foreign students from various countries, such as Ghana, Egypt, and Pakistan, and together we worked as one family under the supervision of Prof. Xin-Ying Ji.

2. My dream

My dream is to be a successive researcher and a scientist with the ultimate vision of helping to solve chronic health challenges facing the world. In chasing my dream, I joined the Cell Signal Transduction laboratory to study the regulation of cellular oncogenic markers and their resulting effects. To improve my skills, I also dedicated my spare time to learning up-to-date knowledge and skills by reading articles and publications.

3. Support from the University

As a student, support from the univesity is key in achieving my goals. The university offers learning environment and accommodation services. It also funds my studies and provides assistance when neded. Besides, it has lots of brilliant events, especially culture festival, which helps to socialize and learn interesting cultural values of other countries and to make new friends.

4. Support from the laboratory

In the lab, I get to learn current molecular techniques by using modern instruments and equipment. Under the management of teacher Tao Li, the lab provided me with all the necessary materials, reagents and assistance timely. In addition, through international salon and weekly meetings, I get a chance to learn presentation skills and interact with students and teachers from other labs.

5. Support from the teachers

The seniority and guidance of the teachers have been very crucial for me and my colleagues to mastering both the theoretical knowledge and practical skills. My supervisors prof. Xin-Ying Ji and prof. Dong-Dong Wu have been very helpful and supportive in many ways ,such as providing review writing trainings and experimental guidance.

6. Support from Chinese students

I learned most of the techniques from Chinese students, and the guidance of Pengzhen Dong and Yage Chen has been essential in improving my technical skills, understanding the lab and interacting with other students.

7. Achievements

Since I joined the laboratory, I learned a lot of new techniques which helped to improve my writing skills as well as my technical ability. My greatest achievement so far has been to succeed in publishing two review articles on JCR zone 2 journals.

8. Future plan

My future plan starts with contributing to the scientific community not only by publishing in leading journals, but also by publishing useful and meaningful data. Ultimately, to use the knowledge and skills I have learned to help solving health challenges facing the world. With hard work and dedication, I believe that my dreams will be fulfilled.

Thank you, China.