Amongst renowned researchers originating from all corners of the world who have greatly impacted their field or discipline through their studies, a budding 23-year-old has remarkably immortalised his name on Stanford University’s Top 2% Researchers list with his paper on COVID-19 and long-COVID. Yong Shin Jie is one of 26 researchers from Sunway University who made it onto Stanford University’s highly-cited list, making it the highest number of researchers from a private university in Malaysia.
Shin Jie, a Malaysian born and raised in Brunei, recently wrote a paper on “Long COVID or post-COVID-19 syndrome: putative pathophysiology, risk factors, and treatments”, which was recognised and cited by numerous academics worldwide. The lack of information on this topic in existing academic literature was what prompted him to conduct this research.
In addition to this research, Shin Jie has also authored more than 10 other papers. This impressive track record at such a young age is not only attributable to his interest in the subject area, but also his passion for writing. Shin Jie said, “I believe writing is one of the skills that can bring you anywhere when mastered correctly. Almost all high-end careers — academia, law, or business — demand good prose,” explaining that he sees writing as a form of art which engages both the creative and intellectual minds.
The young scientist has been studying in Malaysia since the age of 16. He completed his undergraduate study in Biology with Psychology at Sunway University and subsequently continued his Master’s degree in Life Sciences, specialising in neurosciences.
When he is not hours deep into his research, Shin Jie spends most of his free time at the gym as he also happens to be a competitive powerlifter. Just recently, he was named the #1 Overall Junior in Malaysia with IPF GL points of 93.52. On top of that, he was the champion for Junior and Open U74kg Weight Class categories, and took the title of Best Men Overall for Junior, Open as well as All Ages categories. He also achieved three national records; for Junior Squat, Open Squat and Junior SBD (squat, bench, deadlift).
Moving forward, he does hope to embark on a PhD journey, but it will not be anytime soon, and not until he finds a topic that he is keen enough to dedicate three to five years to.
