Marlene Kanmogne
Hometown: Omaha, NE
Undergrad: Johns Hopkins University
Major: Neuroscience
Minor: Anthropology
My name is Marlene Kanmogne and I was born in England and have moved between there, Cameroon, and Oklahoma before my family settled in Nebraska. Both my parents worked and received multiple higher-level degrees and have stressed the importance of education to both myself and my younger siblings for as long as I can remember. This coupled with my early academic interests led me to consider medicine from an early age. From as far back as middle school I have had an interest in science. My favorite teachers tended to be my science teachers and as the semesters went by I realized I never had a problem asking questions. I loved accumulating knowledge especially when I could relate it to my body or interactions happening in the world around me. I would take a lesson learned on metabolism and visualize what was going on inside my stomach during lunch. The way I would handle knowledge also enabled me to make cross connections, which only furthered the intensity of my questions.
This theme was continued during my undergraduate experience at Johns Hopkins, where I received a degree in Neuroscience. There I immediately joined a lab and got even more hands on research experience. My drive to ask, solve, and develop questions, plus my previous research experience helped cement my want of pursuing a dual MD-PhD degree. I could not be more excited to have the opportunity to do so at WashU. Here, there is an abundance of research opportunities, and a deep collaborative atmosphere that produces innovative thinking. The MSTP program is truly integrative, with the goal of training the next generation of premier physician scientists. I hope to use my passion for both people and asking questions to ultimately make connections that enhance the lives of patients suffering from neurological deficits, and I am confident that I can do so with my training here.