Pharmacy Student from Myanmar Finds Purpose in Uncertainty
After leaving Myanmar for Cedarville University, pharmacy student Thurein Zan overcame homesickness, isolation and academic challenges. Strengthened by faith, research experience and perseverance, he discovered a calling to improve patient safety and healthcare access in Myanmar.
After leaving Myanmar for Cedarville University, pharmacy student Thurein Zan found more than an education. He found a calling — one he hopes will one day help improve health care in his home country.
Zan arrived at Cedarville in 2022, but his first year was marked by homesickness, cultural adjustment and the demands of a rigorous academic program. He said the season was filled with “misery and doubts.”
Persevering Through Conflict, Isolation and Academic Pressure
Former Cedarville pharmacy professor Dr. Justin Cole said Zan also carried burdens beyond campus life.
“Due to the ongoing conflict in his home country, he has been forced to navigate unique challenges related to his personal life and education, often enduring isolation from family and friends,” said Cole. “He has been a model of perseverance during his time at Cedarville.”
In the middle of that uncertainty, Zan found stability in Jubilate, Cedarville’s worship choir, which he joined in his first year. What began as one part of campus life became a source of comfort and a place where his faith deepened.
Research Experience Shapes Calling to Clinical Pharmacy
As his faith grew stronger, his professional direction became clearer too. Through his work as a research assistant, Zan contributed to several projects, including international research on the treatment of self-inflicted scars and lesions known as artefactual skin disease, or ASD. That experience helped him see research not simply as an academic responsibility but as part of his future calling.
“God provided clarity on his calling through the ASD research,” said Zan. “My interest in research was deeply rooted through it, and it was a tipping point of my decision to become a clinical researcher.”
Improving Patient Safety and Medication Access in Myanmar
That sense of calling now shapes what Zan hopes to do after graduation. As a part of Karen, an ethnic minority in Myanmar, he wants to use his pharmacy training to strengthen patient safety, improve medication access control in community pharmacies and expand the role of clinical pharmacy, especially in rural areas of Karen population.
“One of my goals is to contribute my pharmacy knowledge back to my country,” said Zan. “I want to contribute to the areas of patient safety and medication access control in the community pharmacy setting and promote the role of a clinical pharmacy in my country, especially in the rural areas.”
“As I overcome challenges during pharmacy school, the song reminds me to dwell in God,” said Zan.
About Cedarville University
Cedarville University, an evangelical Christian institution in southwest Ohio, offers undergraduate and graduate residential and online programs across arts, sciences and professional fields. With 7,265 students, it is among Ohio's largest private universities and is ranked among the nation’s top five evangelical universities in the Wall Street Journal’s 2026 Best Colleges in the U.S. Cedarville is also known for its vibrant Christian community, challenging academics and high graduation and retention rates. Learn more at cedarville.edu.