Postgraduate studies at SIH

If you find this post while searching for information about postgraduate studies at the Shanghai Institute of Hematology (SIH), please feel free to email me. As someone who strives to be fair-minded, I would be delighted to share my experiences and impartial insights with you.

Selecting the mentor and program is crucial for your future career. With a mentor who aligns with your research interests and career goals, you can gain valuable insights and guidance while feeling supported, motivated, and inspired. Without this alignment, academic life can become quite challenging and isolating. I deliberately avoid saying “finding the right mentor” because not everyone seeks the same qualities in a mentor. Some may prioritize research output and find a demanding mentor motivating rather than off-putting.

However, SIH does not have a rotation system for enrolled postgraduate students. This means you must choose your mentor before beginning your studies, which can be a daunting task. Moreover, all websites that provide mentor evaluations in China have been blocked for various reasons, making it even more difficult to find reliable information. Although some evaluations may lack objectivity, students at the early stages of their careers still need these resources to gain a general understanding of mentors’ personalities and research styles.

I’ve heard the argument that the power imbalance between mentors and trainees lies in students having the right to change mentors after a certain period, while mentors lack the same right to change students. This contradicts the common understanding that mentors hold the power to dominate both the relationship and their trainees’ careers. I believe both the argument and the inequality are valid, but the reality is more complex. For instance, in China, not all undergraduates have genuinely chosen to pursue postgraduate studies from the heart. Many feel compelled to do so because the job market is not particularly welcoming to them. Meanwhile, professors at top universities and institutes like SIH face pressure to publish papers, secure grants, and meet tenure requirements, which makes them less patient with students.

Ultimately, I hope that every postgraduate student as well as their mentor will thrive together in their research journey.