Mary Gao grew up in Shenzhen, China, and came to Sheffield, MA for her high school education when she was 16. She completed her undergraduate degree at Boston College, MA, where she received a B.S. in Chemistry. During her undergraduate career, Mary researched with Dr. Dunwei Wang in selective methane oxidation.

Currently, as a graduate student in the Mallouk group at UPenn, Mary is working on 3D bipolar membranes and nanomotors.

Outside of the research lab, Mary enjoys travelling and drawing. She is also very interested in ancient history.