U of T took a chance on Joel Tan – and changed his life

Joel Tan celebrates with his parents in front of University College after receiving his honours bachelor of science degree at his June 2014 convocation. All photos courtesy of Joel Tan.

Joel Tan (BSc 2014 UC, MSc 2019) overcame the odds to become a rising star in biomedical research, but his dreams could have ended in a rigid Singapore school system if U of T hadn’t opened its doors, he says.

Tan’s gratitude runs deep. He took time to praise U of T during his speech to his graduation class at a Harvard Medical School ceremony in May after he earned his PhD in biological and biomedical sciences. With himself as “Exhibit A,” Tan also used his remarks to urge educators everywhere to give opportunities to students who don’t necessarily fit the straight-A stereotype.

“I wasn’t kidding in my speech, U of T changed my life and set me on my path today,” says Tan, who earned an honours bachelor of science as a member of University College in 2014 and a master of science from the Temerty Faculty of Medicine in 2019.

“Much of my success at Harvard was 100 per cent attributable to my training at U of T. At every single stage of my time at U of T, I had amazing opportunities because that community supported me and mentors opened doors for me.”

A self-described late bloomer, Tan’s underdog story of sacrifice and perseverance went viral after the Harvard speech was picked up by Singapore media, sparking debate about educational reform in his home country and helping to generate more than 25,000 YouTube views. Many well-wishers reached out to share similar struggles, including a cabinet minister in Singapore.

Overcoming obstacles to pursue his passion 

As a young student, Tan’s passion was in biology, sparked by a quest for information about the cancer his father battled during Tan’s childhood.

But when he was still in his early teens, teachers and assessment exams in Singapore aimed at directing students on specific career paths steered him away from the elite “three-science stream” that included biology.

Denied the chance to take his favourite topic, Tan’s academics suffered and he was soon told to forget about university completely, he says.

“I really didn't know what I was doing back in middle school and high school,” says Tan. “But the message I received was that higher education was probably not the right path for me and for a while it seemed they might be right.”

After he graduated high school and completed his compulsory military service, Tan applied twice to several Singapore universities but was rejected.

He decided to take a chance with an overseas university. His family was not well off and he didn’t want to spend too much on application fees, so he only applied to one, but kept his aspirations high.

“I remember looking up university rankings and choosing U of T because it was the top university in Canada,” says Tan. “I went for the best one. But honestly, I considered it a long shot and I did not really think I would get in.”

Tan says his marks were mainly Cs and Ds, but his extracurriculars were strong, full of volunteer and mentorship experiences. He wonders if that might have made the difference.

"I often think about how much of my life depended on someone deciding my past performance did not have to define my future potential," Tan says, echoing some of the speech that went viral. “Talent is everywhere; opportunity is not."

Finding his home at U of T 

After his acceptance to U of T, Tan was finally able to take his first biology class. He gained access to experiential lab work, mentors and a community that allowed him to discover who he could become through science, he says.

His U of T experience included professors who took the time to get to know him and involve him in their own research work, even as an undergrad.

“I appreciate the kind of classes that were available to me at U of T. For someone who was really interested in research, U of T does such an amazing job of getting you involved and trained to go down that path once you graduate,” says Tan.

His Arts & Science undergraduate degree prepared him for the transition to the Temerty Faculty of Medicine for his postgraduate degree. “Temerty trains their master's students very well, with a lot of emphasis on translational research,” says Tan.

His experience included three years at the U of T-affiliated Hospital for Sick Children.

Tan says the community of mentors at U of T who helped along the way included not just faculty members but students in his grad year and ahead, who were unfailingly generous with their time and willing to share experiences, something he has been sure to pay forward by becoming a University College alumni mentor.

“When I was still in Canada, I participated in a lot of the U of T alumni programs as well,” says Tan, who is a newly minted Schmidt Science Fellow. A partnership with the Rhodes Trust, the Schmidt Science Fellows program supports promising new scientists to develop cutting-edge research.

Continuing to give back to his community

Tan’s dedication to mentoring and giving back to his community was valued at Harvard as well, where he was introduced by officials at the May convocation ceremony as an exceptional scientist whose accomplishments were matched only by his commitment to his fellow students.

His research at Harvard into innate immunity led to the discovery of a group of bacterial defence systems he named Hailong, after a Chinese ocean dragon.

As a 2026 Schmidt Science Fellow, he plans to pivot towards computational biology and use machine learning to address neurodegeneration.

Tan’s father is now battling Alzheimer's, and while Tan’s research likely won’t yield anything in time to help him, he hopes to eventually return to Canada to start his own lab and contribute to a future cure or therapy.

Originally published by the Faculty of Arts & Science