INTERDISCIPLINARY RESEARCH SINCE FRESHMAN YEAR, INTERNSHIP IN THE US IN SOPHOMORE YEAR

In early July, Phan Thi Hien Chi, a second-year student at VinUni’s College of Engineering and Computer Science, had the opportunity to present her research paper titled “A Novel Transparency Strategy-based Data Augmentation Approach for BI-RADS Classification of Mammograms” at the 22nd International Conference on Signal Processing of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE). IEEE is a global association and organization of experts focused on the development, implementation, and maintenance of technology-centered products and services. This year’s conference was held in Hanoi with the participation of over 200 domestic and international scientists, including more than 100 international scientists from over 30 countries.

Hien Chi’s research project is part of the VinUni-Illinois Smart Health Research Center (VISHC) and involves collaboration with many researchers from VinBigData. They use Machine Learning and Deep Learning technologies to analyze breast tumor masses in X-ray images. The application developed by Hien Chi’s team yields more accurate and superior results compared to conventional analysis methods.

However, this is just the initial stage of Chi’s research. She hopes that her research will contribute to more accurate diagnoses of breast cancer and have broader applications in the field of healthcare in general.

At VinUni, Chi has been pursuing research since her first year. In the early days of her research, she felt unsure about where to begin. But with guidance and support from her professors, she gradually achieved remarkable and admirable results, despite experiencing several failures.
“I believe that my current efforts can bring significant benefits to the community. Healthcare is a crucial and necessary field for human beings, so the application of technology will help improve the quality of health and ensure that the profession never falls behind or becomes outdated,” Chi emphasized.

This summer, Chi will continue her journey to the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC), USA, as a research intern to pursue interdisciplinary research projects. She will receive a monthly stipend of 1,700 USD (equivalent to nearly 40 million VND) during her internship at UIUC.

“During my internship at UIUC, I will be exposed to a new field, but I will continue to focus on smart health, which means applying computer science to disease diagnosis, such as medical image analysis technology. What’s important to me is the opportunity to work with talented professors and immerse myself in an international environment. At the same time, I will learn valuable knowledge, understand which skills I need to master, and find my future direction,” Chi eagerly shared.

Hiền Chi also revealed that she had a passion for research since high school, working on a small project related to smart health. During the VinUni admissions interview, Hiền Chi disclosed her early interest in smart health research and hoped that her learning journey at VinUni would bring many challenges and long-term opportunities in the field she loves.