Zhijun Zhan (second from the right) became the first graduate of CTAHR’s 3+2 master’s program in Food Science in December after he successfully defended his thesis “Optimizing the Production of Bacteriocins by Lactic Acid Bacteria Isolated from Foods Using Improved Deferred Antagonism Assay.” Zhijun earned a bachelor’s degree from Hunan Agricultural University in China and a master’s degree from UH Manoa in five years.
Faculty from both institutions were instrumental in this significant milestone, along with the CTAHR Academic and Student Affairs Office and UHM Office of Graduate Education 3+2 Program Coordinator Xiaoxin (Ivy) Mu. Celebrating the milestone with Zhan were, from left, thesis committee members Soojin Jun and Chin Nyean Lee and Food Science MS Program Graduate Chair Yong Li.
HNFAS expects to graduate three more master’s students in its 3+2 Programs in 2018 and looks forward to expanding its graduate programs through collaboration with international partner institutions.