Mr Pok Man HO
• BSc student (double major in Ecology & Biodiversity and Earth System Science)
• Exchange study and Overseas Research Fellowship at Australian National University in 2017 –18
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"What you have planned is more important than what you have prepared."
“It was not until my exchange study at Australian National University that I was aware of my strong interest in bioinformatics research. I joined a research group there which I later found my interest lie in computational biology. This experience drove me to explore research further via the Faculty’s Overseas Research Fellowship (ORF) scheme, and I was excited to see my research on computational ecology developed in Australia being accepted as one of the ORF projects.
Doing research is way far different from working on course projects. If I had to choose a good analogy, I would say it is like sailing in a wide open and endless ocean than in a harbour. From the ORF project, I learnt the importance of making back-up plans, given the unpredictable environment. From my learning of different software, I got to know the diversity of their efficiency, resolution, accuracy and most importantly, how to be a flexible researcher.
One important lesson I have learnt at ORF is to ‘keep calm and fix problems’. From there, I have learnt how to embrace and tackle challenges. Learning out of the classroom is always an invaluable experience to enhance one’s knowledge and skills. It has nothing to do with GPA, but authentic and hands-on experience for the workplace.”
