Interview with Jane Teng – Miss New York Chinese 2006 Contestant #4

Jane Teng at the Miss Photogenic competition. (photo by Yuan-Kwan Chan / Meniscus Magazine)

Born: Kaohsiung, Taiwan
Resides: Philadelphia
Occupation: Student at the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine (also holds a B.S. in Biology from Temple University and a master’s in biomedical sciences)

Meniscus: Why did you to decide to enter this pageant?

Jane: Because I am going to [turn] 25 very soon, so this is like a transition phase for me, plus I just want to get some experience out of this.

This is your last shot.

Yeah, my last shot.

What do you plan to do eventually, like professionally? I think I read on the Web site that you’re in medicine.

Yeah, I’m pretty much into cardiology because that is what my research is about. Now I think it is a little bit too early to say, but I [have] more [of a calling] to become a cardiothoracic surgeon.

So is this basically your summer vacation then?

Yeah. I’m having fun and this will be one of the greatest experiences I have ever had.

Now I understand that you guys have done a lot of rehearsals and events and so on. Can you tell me a bit about what you’ve done in the last month?

We have to go here every day to practice dancing, and then we have to do like exactly what they tell us to do. Just from the beginning to the end, we feel like we have a total transition from a very plain girl into something more accomplished. That’s what I feel like. I’ve learned a lot.

For instance, Judy [the runway coach] taught us a lot, like how a girl is supposed to be like: how to sit, how to sit right. Usually I would never think about this because you never notice it until people tell you how you’re supposed to look like. I think it is very useful, especially if I am going to go into the profession of being a doctor, I have to look at myself and see how I am going to portray myself in the public.

Is this your first pageant?

Yes, this is the first pageant. Actually, I never entered any pageants before just because of school and then I do modeling here and there. A lot of things going on.

So then with the modeling, you were probably pretty comfortable with today’s photo shoots [at the Miss Photogenic photography competition for the pageant]. Or was it kind of different because you knew it was a competition?

Well, for photo shoots I used to do print, especially for commercials, so it was little bit different. Pageants, you have to smile too, but it’s just a little bit different because you have to portray a smile that everybody has to like. With commercials, sometimes you have to portray different smiles according to what the product is selling.

What are some of the modeling gigs that you’ve had in the past?

I do a lot of industry shoots like as a businesswoman, as a nurse. Recently I did a bridal shoot for Main Line Today. It’s a magazine in Philadelphia in Main Line. So I don’t have to do much – I just have to laugh and smile!

Can you tell me a bit about your talent portion? What do you plan to do?

I compose my own songs. I play the piano too, so I’m going to play the piano, singing my own song.