‘I’m really grateful’: USask’s most outstanding graduate didn’t do it alone

University is hard no matter who you are, but the right support system makes all the difference, says ChenKun (Steve) Zheng.

Today, Zheng will graduate from the University of Saskatchewan (USask) with a Bachelor of Science (Biomedical Science) in cellular, physiological and pharmacological sciences. For his cumulative weighted average of 98.62 per cent, he will be awarded the Governor General’s Silver Medal—the medal for the top student graduating from any USask undergraduate program at Spring Convocation.

“It’s very exciting. But also, I just can’t help but feel extremely lucky to be in this opportunity because I don’t think anyone else works any less hard than I do,” said Zheng, who is also receiving the University Medal in the BSc(BMSC) Degree.

“I’m really grateful to have had friends to help me along this university journey. I would not be here without them.”

Zheng attended Centennial Collegiate High School in Saskatoon, where he became fascinated by the science of human body systems taught in his health and biology classes.

“I was like, ‘Wow, this is so cool.’ And I knew in that moment that I definitely wanted to do something science- and human body-related,” he said.

The biomedical science program, jointly offered by USask’s College of Arts and Science and College of Medicine, was the perfect fit.

“I’m just really grateful to have had such a positive undergraduate experience. The professors and faculty are really nice in this program,” Zheng said.

His peers were just as important. Zheng appreciated the peer mentors who helped guide him through his first-year classes and was determined to help other students the same way.

He spent three years volunteering as a BIOL 120 peer mentor with the USask Library and later became a teaching assistant in the Department of Biology. Supporting other students turned out to be one of his favourite university experiences.

“I think part of it is just I enjoy biology so much. And getting to share that love with these students and help them have an easier time in these classes—it’s been really rewarding,” he said.

Through volunteering and joining campus clubs, Zheng found a priceless group of friends who motivated and leaned on each other. As a peer mentor, he always advised younger students to find a community to belong to.

“The analogy I use is I think life is like a beef stew. In order to have a good beef stew, you need good beef but also good stew ingredients and a nice pot to boil the stew. So I guess finding that community is building your stew,” he said with a laugh.

Everyone learns differently, so for academic success Zheng also recommends experimenting with different study approaches to find what works for you: whether it’s flashcards, listening to audio recordings of your notes, or drawing concepts on paper.

And perhaps most essential of all: get some sleep.

“I know for me personally, when I tried to study super late into the night right before a final exam in second year, those were always my worst performing exams. So then in third and fourth year I started napping, and it skyrocketed how much I can remember,” Zheng said.

Zheng wanted to make research part of his undergrad experience. He spent four summers working in the laboratories of USask faculty members, supported by research scholarships—including two Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council Undergraduate Student Research Awards.

“I’m really thankful that faculty members in my program are really open to you just cold emailing them for research opportunities, and I think that’s really nice, giving us the opportunity to do something hands-on,” he said.

In the lab of Department of Biology faculty member Dr. Chris Ambrose (PhD), Zheng helped develop new DNA constructs and transgenic lines to study plant leaf growth processes—providing new “workhorse” lines for the lab that Ambrose said fixed “a long-standing thorn” in his side.

For a project in the lab of the Department of Anatomy, Physiology and Pharmacology’s Dr. Asmahan AbuArish (PhD), Zheng helped decipher a protective pathway against cigarette smoke in human lung cells. Zheng was first co-author on a recent journal article about this work and won the Top Oral Presentation Award for his presentation on the project at the 2025 Protein Structure Function and Malfunction Conference at USask.

Zheng wants to be a doctor. After considering admission offers from multiple medical schools, he has decided to attend the USask College of Medicine this fall, where he can remain near his family, friends and support system.

“Since I know medical school comes with its own set of challenges, I thought it would be best to be close to home next to the people who made me into who I am today,” he said.