Alyssa Mengeu

Hometown:  Wheeling, WV 

Hobbies:  puzzles, listening to music, crossword puzzles

Scholarships and/or academic awards:  Promise, Climb Higher, Auxiliary of Wheeling Hospital Scholarship

Extracurriculars:  Project 168, STEM for the arts club, Pre-med club

Interesting fact:  I like to collect grandpa/grandma shirts. 

Favorites: Spring, Halloween, green, my dorm, giraffe, a roller coaster park  

Interests outside of major:  I like to listen to music. I played the flute for 8 years in public school, so I really appreciate a variety of music. I like to do puzzles and crossword puzzles and do yoga in my free time.

Q&A with Alyssa

• What is your favorite place on campus?
• The Mountainlair
• What is your most memorable moment?
• My most memorable moment was going to my first basketball game with my friends and really getting into it just because of the school spirit and the camaraderie even though I never really enjoyed watching sports.
• What is your favorite class and why? 
• My favorite class is biology 117 because it deviates from cell biology and goes into evolution, development of animals, and the relationships between organisms which is what I really love to learn about.
• What experience or class has taught you the most so far?
• The class that has taught me the most so far is biology 117. It goes in depth about organisms and how they grow and interact, and even though it gets complicated, it’s truly interesting and worth learning.
• Why did you choose WVU?
• I chose WVU because they’re an R1 institution, and I wanted to do research while getting my degree. Plus, I love the campus and the scenery in West Virginia.
• What advice would you give your freshman self?
• It’s going to be hard, but you are more than capable of achieving what you want and being the person you want to be.
• Share something you have learned during your time at WVU.
• I learned that the stress of finals week will implant itself into me so I always feel like I have to be doing something related to school.
• What are your favorite things about being in this major?
• My favorite things about being in this major are always being interested in what I’m learning, the pride that comes with being a biology major, the competitiveness, and exploring what we learn in lectures in the labs.
• Why did you want to pursue this major?
• I pursued this major because I love learning about living things and I want to use my degree to go to medical school and do research.
• How have your professors and/or staff helped you be successful?
• My professors are always very open to answering any questions because they actually want you to learn. Going to office hours is really helpful because it allows you to think things through with someone there to guide you in the right direction.
• What skills and/or knowledge have you gained that you feel will help you be successful in your future career?
• Skills like basic lab procedures (pipetting, using microscopes, gel electrophoresis), learning about the development of animals, and evolution will really help me be successful in my career in the future because they’re kind of like universally known topics in every biology field no matter where I end up.
• What are your career goals? 
• My career goals involve going to medical school, going to residency, and becoming a trauma surgeon. I also want to try to get into health policy at some point in my life to try to change the way that healthcare runs like big business.
• What has been your favorite class so far and why?
• My favorite class is biology 117 because it deviates from cell biology and goes into evolution, development of animals, and the relationships between organisms which is what I really love to learn about.
• What is the most interesting/mind blowing thing you have learned so far that is related to your major?
• I think the most mind blowing thing I’ve learned in my major so far has been that prions (which are just misfolded proteins) can infect other proteins and become so dangerous that anything infected with prions has to be thrown away or burned to stop them from spreading.