Linda Cao

Yilin “Linda” Cao (Trinity) was born in Shanghai, China, and immigrated to the U.S. when she was five years old. She graduated from Timber Creek High School in Orlando, Florida, as one of the valedictorians, a National Merit Scholar, and a State and National AP Scholar. Linda was an avid member of the school’s music program, gaining distinctions such as principal clarinetist of the top concert ensemble and president of the Tri-M Music Honor Society. She was also vice president of the Beta Club, the school’s largest service organization. Linda continues these interests in volunteerism and music at Duke, where she is on the executive boards for Duke China Care and Duke FEMMES, volunteers in the Pediatric Blood and Bone Marrow Transplant Unit, and plays clarinet in Duke Chamber Players. Through DukeEngage, she taught English at a middle school for children of migrant workers in Beijing, China. Linda is planning to double major in Biology and Asian/Middle Eastern Studies and also serves on the executive board for the Biology Majors Union. She was a Howard Hughes Research Fellow (Summer 2011) and a current Biology Research Forum Fellow and is now conducting an independent research project on CD8+ T-cell metabolism in the Rathmell Lab (Pharmacology and Cancer Biology). As for career aspirations, Linda hopes to meld basic science and medicine, by conducting translational research and/or pursuing an MD/PhD.