Xiaolin Zhang graduated with a B.S. in Materials Science and Engineering from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign in 2012. From January 2013, she started her graduate studies at the University of Washington working on kidney microvasculature remodeling.

Xiaolin joined the Rolandi group in September 2014 and is pursuing a Ph.D. in Materials Science and Engineering. She is focusing on developing self-assembled chitin nanofibers, biocomposites, and exploring their applications. Her general research interests also include using polymers and hydrogels to create ECM-based structures for tissue engineering applications.