Today I finally received the EMS express package sent by the Graduate School of Shanghai Jiao Tong University. The moment I opened the envelope and caught sight of that signature SJTU red, a huge weight was lifted off my shoulders. Opening the Ph.D. admission letter officially, it read "Full-time Ph.D. Student," with major code (080500) and a registration date of September 12. The red official seal and the SJTU emblem signify that my academic research career for the next few years is about to unfold on this campus.
In fact, in many people's eyes, the labels of "anime character cosplay" and "top university Ph.D." seem like parallel lines that rarely cross. But I have always felt that academic pursuit and personal hobbies are never an either-or choice. In my daily life, from Monday to Friday, I might be wearing a white lab coat or sitting in front of a computer running data, reading literature, and deriving formulas. When the weekend or holidays arrive, I put on wigs and costumes for a white hair cosplay look, wear colored contact lenses, and transform into someone else, experiencing different worldviews and character mindsets. This contrast not only keeps my life balanced with work and rest, but also helps me relieve academic stress effectively. Whenever my research hits a bottleneck, looking back at my cosplay photosets or heading to a convention to interact with people, sweat a bit, and take photos usually sweeps away all the built-up frustration, allowing me to dive back into complex research topics with a clearer mind.
Posting this Ph.D. admission letter today isn't about bragging about how great I am; I just feel that the character Mornye gave me immense strength, providing a virtual sanctuary where I could briefly escape and unwind during those high-pressure days of preparation and application. Whether pulling all-nighters memorizing English vocabulary or repeatedly revising research proposals, just knowing I had an outdoor photoshoot planned for the weekend or a scheduled cosplay session kept me looking forward to the future. The process of applying for a Ph.D. is long and filled with self-doubt, but the desire to keep striving upward, the curiosity about the world, and the determination to delve deep into a specialized field kept driving me forward.
Shanghai Jiao Tong University has always been an academic sanctuary I longed for. Direct Ph.D. admission to Shanghai Jiao Tong University is not only a validation of my hard work over the past few years, but also means I will be taking on weightier research responsibilities. Starting from No. 800 Dongchuan Road, I hope to find a research direction truly worth dedicating years to within materials science or the interdisciplinary field of my major. The initial Ph.D. life might not be easy, but I am fully prepared to endure hardships and persevere. After all, playing cosplay requires spending time polishing hair and makeup, studying character lore, and learning photography post-processing; academic research is likewise a process that demands rigorous refining—the mindset and methods are fundamentally identical.
The moment I got the admission letter, I was even thinking about whether I could shoot a Mornye cosplay set of this character on the SJTU campus after school starts, incorporating the admission letter as a prop into those anime-style photography visuals. Although it sounds a bit chunibyo, for deep enthusiasts like us, it really is a deeply romantic thing. After all, who says the world of top students can't have hobbies and color?
Throughout my upcoming Ph.D. journey, I will maintain my reverence for academics and strive to produce meaningful research results in my research group. At the same time, I will carefully plan my spare time to keep sustaining this cosplayer daily life passion. Setting no limits for myself, refusing to blindly follow trends, and walking steadily in every field I love—that is perhaps the ideal life state I pursue. Alright, now that I've shared my admission letter, it's time to head back to grind out papers and prepare for upcoming lab group meeting reports. May every university researcher in the future shine brightly in what they love!