Thong Nguyen-Minh Le

  STUDENT EXPERIENCE

Thong Nguyen-Minh Le

Nationality: VIETNAM

Admission Year: 2016

Department Of Physics, 3rd Year PhD Student

National Central University/ Molecular Science and Technology (MST) Program, TIGP, Taiwan

Advisor: Prof. Jer-Lai Kuo

It is challenging to find good ideas to do research. As well it is impossible to achieve the goal without any plans and efforts. I would like to say that I am a lucky student to work with my advisor and one of his energetic postdocs. I have learnt many things from both their work style and the expertise. My research ideas cannot be in a good progress without their advice, and my own efforts are also indispensable to complete the work.

WHAT IS YOUR LEARNING EXPERIENCE HERE AT THE TIGP-MST PROGRAM?

General Topics

For me, the first-year enrollment was the core to be aware of the entire Ph.D. life. In this first year, I had a couple of tasks to achieve with my full efforts, that is, taking coursework and selecting an advisor. I finished 18 required credits in the first year although it was a challenging job. Selecting an advisor is another task which took me lots of concern because the advisor will be mainly responsible and contracted to my Ph.D success. Finally, I have chosen the advisor who is expertise in molecular science and computational materials science, the field I am most interested in.

Academics

My project is about the materials for hydrogen storage applications using the DFT calculations and thermodynamic models. I work with an energetic postdoc who gives me good academic advice, which can be a hint for how to optimize the molecular structures or the theoretical methods to apply to the simulation models. He and my advisor always give me great encouragement to my research.

Personal Experience

My lab has a friendly environment that Professors, Postdocs and lab mates are very willing to offer help. We share research ideas or discuss with each other supportively. In IAMS, each PI has his/ her own expertise in professional communication skills and academic perspectives. I had a great opportunity to attend their lectures, and worked with them during my lab rotations as well.

WHAT ARE THE PROS AND CONS OF STUDYING HERE IN TAIWAN?

Pros

There are many advantages of studying in Taiwan. The facilities and scientific activities are two of the chief appealing factors for me. The facilities to do research in Taiwan is in high standards. It is convenient for students to access to those facilities and activities with their advisors’ support.

Computing system

For those who work on theoretical calculation or simulation, they are provided sufficient cores of high computing system to run their own jobs. The advisor will allocate the amount of cores to each member concerning with their resource requirements.

Downloading academic papers

Students are entitled to download and read the well-known academic journal resources listed in International Scientific Index (ISI) or The Science Citation Index (SCI) as well as to access to the interdisciplinary database searching, namely, Web of Science. Those resources have their own copyrights that are not easy to reach in other countries.

Library

There are two huge libraries, Academia Sinica Library and National Taiwan University Library, where students can borrow hardback books. It is doubtless that they have all kinds of books for your inquiries. The well-stocked library is really important and valuable for students during their study and research period. This is the case when students are studying in Taipei. On the contrast, it is difficult for students who are in the south or middle of Taiwan to access to those materials. 

Active research environment

Besides the group meeting in your own lab, there are other academic activities that you can join to enhance your research perspectives. It can be the joined group meeting held every month among different research groups where you can acquire useful ideas which you are interested in. There will be weekly seminars given by professors where you can learn a plenty of things from their research topics and presentation skills. Additionally, international workshops provide you the opportunity to meet famous scholars worldwide. Via these active research activities, students will have more chances to set your own theme and collaborate with those researchers down the road.

Cons

It is always stressful to complete the assignment given by the advisor. Students should be ready for the progress report.

WHAT ADVICE WILL YOU GIVE TO STUDENTS WHO ARE INTERESTED IN STUDYING HERE?

1.       Setting goals and duration of your Ph.D. study in detail

The goal should be something that can help you grow to be an independent researcher. Setting goals help you shape the plan with a clear view for a few years ahead. Eventually, when you make all-out effort to do it, you will find that you save much time on pursuing the Ph.D.

2.       Attending seminars as many as you can in the first year of your study

It serves for two purposes. For new students, taking seminars helps to train themselves not only in English but also in presentation skills to be outstanding presenters. Most importantly, you can grasp up-to-date research ideas and interests which will probably be your future research topics.

3.       Working harder and smarter

Taking courses, doing homework, reading papers, doing calculations and report results, all of which will take you a lot of time and efforts. However, it is usually true that working harder helps you finish jobs without hindrance. Leading by example, you can usually recognize how hard-working the PIs are at IAMS. There will be regular meetings at around 6 pm and often last for a few hours, even being held on the weekend. Frankly speaking, working hard is just the first step; you should also work effectively, which is an uneasy skill that you need to learn and to be aware of during your Ph.D. study.