This past academic year, undergraduate student researcher Santiago Castro had a lot to learn when he joined the organic chemistry lab of Prof. Jeff Chan. Despite his lack of experience in an organic chemistry research lab, Castro said his graduate student mentor, Chang Jiang, has helped him become considerably more proficient in a variety of research techniques.
“Jiang has been a very level-headed and patient mentor with me throughout the school year which I very much have appreciated,” said Castro, who has learned column chromatography, NMR spectroscopy, and cell passaging and is looking forward to continuing to learn under Jiang’s mentorship in the 2025-26 school year.
A third-year graduate student in the Chan lab, Jiang is the recipient of the 2025 Gary Schuster Mentoring Scholarship in the amount of $1,000. The award was established by Dr. De-Kai Loo (PhD, ’87, Beak) and Dr. Jianjian Zhang (PhD, ’89, Schuster) in 2018 in honor of Gary Schuster, professor of chemistry at Illinois from 1975 to 1994. The scholarship recognizes graduate students who demonstrate outstanding mentorship of undergraduate students.
Professor Chan said Jiang has a real gift for mentorship. In the past two years, she has mentored Castro and three additional undergraduate researchers.
“She does not simply teach lab techniques or assign tasks. She takes the time to explain the science, helps students think through problems, and makes sure they feel like valued members of the team,” Chan said.
On the research front, Jiang’s students are doing meaningful work, Chan said. One mentee is already a co-author on a recent Chemical Science publication and based on the success of her mentees so far, Chan said he expects every undergraduate Jiang has mentored will be a co-author on at least one of her publications.
“Chang fosters a research environment that is supportive, inclusive, and intellectually engaging. Her ability to combine scientific rigor with genuine care makes her an exceptional mentor,” Chan said.
An international student from China who studied chemistry at East China Normal University before pursuing her PhD in chemistry at Illinois, Jiang said she hopes to become a tenure-track professor at a university.
Jiang said she enjoys mentoring mostly because she likes to see the different possibilities from her students.
“The mentoring experience helps me better prepare for my future career as well as understand more about my students and myself,” she said.