Like two peas in a pod, Canberra was just the right fit for Chloe Lin. After touring Sydney and Melbourne, Chloe was drawn to Canberra, a city with its winter sunshine and bushland for days – a fitting location for her calm lifestyle. Canberra’s safe and study-focused environment influenced her decision to study at ANU.
Chloe’s journey down under started in 2018, when she commenced a Bachelor of Advanced Computing (Honours) at the Australian National University.
She is now one of the two recipients of the Pioneering Women Scholarship, commencing her PhD studies soon. This top-up scholarship aims to support female higher degree by research (HDR) students accepted to the ANU School of Computing. Through this, ANU seeks to address the underrepresentation of women in computing by supporting young women on their professional and personal journey, to honour and recognise their merit.
Chloe’s fascination with machine learning and material science began during her honour’s year under the supervision of Dr John Taylor. “For my PhD, I will focus on creating a machine learning pipeline for generating polymers, using generative models like reinforcement and active learning,” she explains. These could contribute to accelerated materials discovery and efficient use of resources.
Speaking about her work, Pioneering Women Program chair Professor Amanda Barnard, AM FRSC FAIP, says, “Chloe’s project combines cutting-edge methods in an area of great importance to science and computing, ultimately making machine learning models more effective while lowering their carbon footprint. The combination of her natural aptitude for research and this pioneering work is a perfect example of what this scholarship is all about.”
Chloe emphasises the importance of scholarships like the Pioneering Women Scholarship for international students.
“As an international student, scholarships are very competitive. This scholarship helps women develop their research interest and supports their academic journey.”
Chloe has noticed an increase in the number of women in STEM roles at ANU, both as students and tutors, but acknowledges that there is still a significant gender gap. “There’s more that can be done to balance the numbers,” she says.
Originally from Taiwan, Chloe grew up being inspired by her mother. “My mother always reminds me that you have to work hard, to prove, not to others, but to prove to yourself that, you did your best.”
Chloe’s advice to young women aspiring to enter STEM fields is to be unafraid and believe in themselves. “Be aware of all the help and resources that are available, and don’t be afraid to ask questions. There are no stupid questions.”
Zora’s Journey from Nanjing to Canberra
Zora Zhuang hails from Nanjing, China, where she developed a passion for computer science early on. Her interest led her to explore various fields such as computational chemistry, material science, and bioinformatics. Zora was drawn to computer science because of its interdisciplinary nature. “Computer science can be applied to many different sciences, which is very attractive to me.”
Zora’s decision to leave China for Australia was a significant one influenced by the flexibility of the Australian university system. “I was attracted to ANU due to its flexibility and opportunities of interdisciplinary studies, which is less accessible back home.”
Canberra’s dry climate was also a plus. Having grown up in a very humid city, she says “I prefer the dryness here.” Much like Chloe, Zora too found herself drawn to Canberra’s calm, relaxed and quiet environment, which helped her stay focused on her studies.
After finishing up her Bachelor of Advanced Computing (Research and Development) (Honours) at ANU, Zora happened to find out about the Pioneering Women’s scholarship. She pointed out the financial relief scholarships such as this provide - allowing students to focus on their studies without the burden of part-time work.
“You’re being honoured for your achievements and that’s inspiring.”
The scholarship enables Zora to do her PhD studies in developing computational techniques to extract and utilise information from flow cytometry, a method used to observe cell population and provide data for further studies of the human (or animal) bodies. study cells.
Flow cytometry provides detailed information about cell populations, which can help doctors diagnose diseases or create personalized treatments. However, this data is very complex and difficult to interpret.
To tackle this, Zora will use machine learning to make sense of the data, focusing on data preprocessing and pattern discovery.
“After a successful undergraduate career at ANU, we are proud to offer Zora a Pioneering Women Scholarship. Successful projects and excellent academic results, while also working as an RA and tutor demonstrated she is on the path to scientific leadership,” says program chair Professor Barnard.
The Pioneering Women Scholarship applications are now open and will close on 3 September for international applicants. Applications open in October for domestic applicants.
Learn more about the Pioneering Women Scholarships
Read about our past recipients—Pioneering woman launches PhD with ANU Computing