Meet Yimo Wang, the PY3 (Class of 2020) Class President on the Chapel Hill campus. She grew up in Zhengzhou, China – a town known for the Shaolin Temple, where monks do martial arts. Outside of school, she hosts dinner parties for her friends and shows off her collection of 50+ orchid species that she cherishes as an avid orchids collector. When she’s not representing the PY3 class at ESOP, she belongs to the House of Hufflepuff according to her husband, but Ravenclaw per the Pottermore quiz. This week, Sit with Senate’s Clara Kim interviewed Yimo Wang and asked her to share her interests inside and outside and pharmacy. So ESOP, what do you think – Does Yimo belong in Hufflepuff or Ravenclaw?
Sit with Senate: What is your goal as Class of 2020 President?
Yimo Wang: Wow, what a tough question! My one and only goal is to serve our class to the best of my ability so that everyone of our class could find me to be his/her voice in conversations with faculty and administration. I find empowering others to be the most fulfilling.
SwS: What are your stress management strategies?
YW: I have several stress management strategies. First, I love to confide my troubles in my husband. He can always come up with some witty comebacks to make me giggle. I am also a badminton fanatic. My techniques and strengths are not the best, but I love the sport. I often find myself reinvigorated after badminton sessions. Currently, I am trying to learn from one of my classmates, Hui, on how to smash the shuttles! Also very importantly, melting away stress with hotpot is an ideal way to nourish my soul. I love talk about life’s curveballs with my fellow hotpot participants at the dinner parties I host.
SwS: What is your favorite drug and disease state?
YW: My favorite class of drugs is bispecific monoclonal antibodies (mAb). My favorite disease state is lymphoma. My research paper for the Molecular Foundations of Drug Action class was on a drug called blinatumomab, which is a bispecific mAb for treating pediatric acute lymphoblastic leukemia. I was fascinated with the ingenious design of the drug. Serendipitously, over this past summer during my internship at a drug company,I worked on a bispecific mAb’s phase 1 clinical trial for treating lymphoma. I love cancer pathophysiology and the brilliant therapies designed to treat it.
SwS: As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?
YW: I wanted to be an astrophysicist when I was 5, a fashion designer when I was a pre-teen, a comedian at some point, and a professional chef.
SwS: Who is your role model?
YW: Hermione Granger! She has a strong sense of self. She stands up for herself and her friends and never succumbs to bullies. She is brilliant like a walking Wikipedia, or rather Wizardpedia. She has faith in a better world and she works hard for creating that world.
SwS: What do you work toward in your free time?
YW: I am currently working on improving my long shots for badminton. I am also in searching of the best Korean BBQ restaurant in the Triangle area.