Vincy Fang

Vincy Fang was born in Dongguan, Guangdong, China, near Hong Kong, and lived there until she was 15. She then moved and began high school in Toronto, Canada, where she set about learning a new language — and a new culture. Not an easy task, but one that she was able to master and that put her on a path in the sciences.

“In China, [according to my friend], I was a social butterfly and active and so confident, but after that, being new to another country, language and people, I lost myself for some time and became very stressed,” Fang said. “But seven years after, I now feel confident in myself. It’s wonderful to hear and talk to people with no fear of being misunderstood. Now if I feel lost [due to the language], there are many people who will help me.”

Fang said her hardest year for learning English was when she started high school. “Because of the language barrier, I found it difficult to study literature and business, so I chose to major in sciences and math — not because I loved it initially, but because I was very strong in these subjects.”

She was able to open up more when she entered McGill University in Canada, where she earned her bachelor’s degree in pharmacology and therapeutics. “When I got into university, there was a more diverse environment so I started to make friends with native speakers in labs, and now I feel comfortable making friends here,” she said. “It makes me happier in life.”

“It has been seven years, but I’m still learning the language every day,” Fang said. “Even though English is my second language, I can understand all of what the professors say and communicate well with people, but sometimes I am confused by native slang or jokes. I learn from my peers every day! And I really appreciate their patience and kindness.”

Known as Vincy because it sounds similar to how her legal name is pronounced in Cantonese, Fang is most definitely an international student, having been educated in China, Canada, and now the United States.

But surprisingly, for a time, radiology was in her future.

“I had wanted to be a pharmacist since I was in high school, but then I changed my mind because I went to a summer camp and there was too much about pharmacology and I didn’t like it,” Fang said. “So then when I went to university I wanted to be a radiologist. I chose physiology as my major first, but then decided to switch to pharmacy because it’s more applicable in life and more helpful.”

Where I come from, there is a culture of choosing a career that is practical, Fang explained. But she realizes both practicality and passion are necessary if she wants to succeed. “I love pharmacy, but the first thing I have to consider is if I’m strong enough and have the abilities to become a pharmacist,” she said.

When Fang applied to pharmacy schools, she looked in Canada and the U.S., planning to stick fairly close to Toronto or Montreal.

Playing to her strengths, she’s now a first-year student at Binghamton University’s School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences.

“This was the first interview I accepted,” she said. “I visited here in February and it was very cold, but I really like the building; it’s new and I felt very welcomed here. People are nice and there are many research opportunities.

“Pharmacology is basically research and pharmacy is more application, and I wanted to participate in both,” Fang added, so she has the best of both worlds studying pharmacy and participating in pharmacology research.

“I’m going to apply for the research track,” Fang added. “I saw the equipment on my interview day and just couldn’t get it out of my head. And I saw the profiles of our researchers and that’s what I want to do. I would love to spend time in the research labs here.”

Drug development interests her and she sees working at the international level in her future. “I would like to be a pharmaceutical pharmacist in China, Canada or the U.S.,” she said. “I can be very flexible, based on my personal experience living in three countries already.”

With the many opportunities in the U.S., Fang believes earning her PharmD here will enhance her knowledge and allow her to compare the healthcare systems in North America with those that are so different in Asian countries.

“I want to be more of an international specialist,” she said. “I’m thinking of spending some more years working in the U.S. or in Canada and then possibly going back to China where it’s developing so fast right now and focus on the health sciences where they need more professionals.”

And Fang has a personal drive to succeed after earning her PharmD.

She has a younger brother and a younger sister, and is the first in her family to attend a university and pursue a doctoral degree. Her father, she said, had hoped she would go into business, but that is not where her interest lies. Luckily, her brother will take up the business mantle.

“I’m so happy my brother will take my role in the family and I can do something I’m really passionate about right now,” Fang said. “And in Chinese traditional perspectives, girls are expected to prioritize having a family instead of pursuing higher education, so I want to prove that I really can be a successful woman. I really want to prove that woman can be independent and be successful in the health care profession.”