Dr Fang Xie

Dr Fang Xie is a Senior Lecturer and Deputy Course Director for MSc Advanced Materials Science Engineering in the Department of Materials.

What led you an academic career path?

Since I was young, I have been always curious about how stuff works and felt “cool” to be a woman engineer. After my MEng degree, I worked in industry as an engineer, where I found it was not challenging enough as you are required to follow protocols most of the time. I was then motivated to pursuit an academic career, which satisfies my intellectual challenge with the opportunities to work on cutting age technologies.

What barriers did you have overcome to become successful in your field?

The key barrier I had to overcome was “Not making my goal a priority”.  Among daily activities, it is very easy to get lost of our goals.   My own experience was that being a mother with two young children, to keep my dream afloat was not easy.

Who is your biggest influence?

My PhD supervisor Professor Ewa Goldys.  Her attitude to strive for excellence and superb productivity has always inspired me.  She was strict and motherly kind to her research team and has always demonstrated integrity and honesty. Most importantly, I learned from her to have faith in myself and pursuit my dream with courage.  I also acquired the skills from her about how to supervise PhD students and motivate team members!

What advice would you give to young women thinking about their careers?

Women face a lot more challenges than men in pursuing an academic career. Never lose faith in yourself, think ahead and always make your goal a priority!