PharmSci grad values networking and collaboration opportunities during degree

Cigdem Sahin’s academic and volunteer work provided opportunities to make new friends and foster interdisciplinary collaboration

Cigdem Sahin says she grew both academically and personally during her time at U of T’s Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy, earning two graduate degrees in pharmaceutical sciences and building a family in a city she fell in love with.

Sahin earned a Bachelor of Science in bioengineering at Yildiz Technical University in Istanbul, Türkiye, before coming to Toronto. She first completed a master’s degree in pharmaceutical sciences from U of T’s Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy in 2017, and successfully defended her PhD thesis in January 2023. Supervised by Professor Carolyn Cummins, Sahin’s PhD research focused on development and preclinical testing of a compound to treat metabolic diseases.

Throughout her time at the Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy, Sahin was involved with the American Association of Pharmaceutical Sciences (AAPS) U of T Student Chapter and held different roles including chair. In 2021, under Sahin’s leadership, the AAPS U of T Student Chapter received the AAPS Student Chapter award for the first time. She was also involved with the Pharmaceutical Sciences Graduate Student Association and the planning committee for the 2018 Graduate Research in Progress (GRIP) Symposium.

In February 2023, Sahin started a post-doctoral fellowship with Dr. Yu-Hua Tseng at Joslin Diabetes Center at Harvard Medical School, where she is investigating adipokines, cell-signalling molecules produced by fat cells and how fat cells differ in their ability to produce heat.

We spoke with Sahin about her experiences at the Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy during her PhD degree.

Why did you choose to do your graduate studies at the Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy?

After my undergraduate degree, I came to Toronto to study at the language school at the University of Toronto. I had only planned on being there for six months, but I loved the city, and I decided that I wanted to do my graduate studies there. This is one of the best decisions that I have made in my life. I had a great time in Toronto, and I learned a lot and grew academically and intellectually.

I had received a postgraduate scholarship from the Turkish government to study in a field related to drug development. I found out about Carolyn Cummins’s drug development research, which is highly translational. And her research projects are interdisciplinary, bridging different fields like medicinal chemistry, pharmacology, pharmacokinetics, and preclinical testing, which really appealed to me.

What are you most proud of from your time at the Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy?

I’m really proud that I received two degrees from the Faculty. And in addition to my academic growth, I received a U of T Student Leadership award in 2023, which was a great honour for me.

And on a personal note, I built up my core family while I was in Toronto. I dated and then got married in Toronto and adopted a cat.

What did you value from your time at the Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy?

Through my graduate studies and being involved with the AAPS, I gained a lot of knowledge, experience and skills that are really valuable for the career I am pursuing. I feel like it has helped me with my networking skills, and this is going to be very useful whether I continue in academia or pursue a career in industry.

Being involved with the AAPS and the PSGSA provided great networking opportunities, but I also made a lot of new friends. As an international student, I didn’t have any family or friends here when I started, and these were great places for me to make new friends and network.

How do you think your education from the Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy will help your career moving forward?

The knowledge and experience gained from my degree has definitely helped develop my career. I also had a great chance to work with experts from different fields, which has helped me to develop collaborations for different projects and build the background knowledge and techniques I need in research. I have just started my career, but I feel like I have more confidence when I am communicating and working with other people, which has been very helpful.