Meet an Alumna, Dorkina Myrick MD/PhD'01

The first African-American woman to graduate from Brown's MD/PhD program, Dorkina Myrick earned both degrees in 2001. She was then recruited by the National Institutes of Health for residency training at its Laboratory of Pathology at the National Cancer Institute (NCI).

After completing her residency, Dorkina chose to focus on biomedical science administration. Today, she is a medical officer at NCI. She manages grants to scientists and mentors early-career physicians and postdoctoral biomedical science fellows and grantees. "We have an entirely new generation of researchers embarking on biomedical careers with so many fresh and innovative ideas," Myrick says.

Recently, Myrick took part in a two-year Brookings Institution Public Leadership program, where she was able to engage in policy debates with key policymakers, including members of President Obama's advisory team. Dorkina Myrick's career path exemplifies how Brown MD/PhD Program graduates go on to have an impact at the national level.