Cindy Lao

Curriculum Vitae

cindy lao

Education

Doctoral Student

2023 – 2028

Durham, NC

Duke University

Doctor of Physical Therapy 

Faculty Merit Scholarship 

Undergraduate Student

2019 – 2023

Seattle, WA

UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON, SEATTLE

Bachelor of Science in Public Health-Global Health

Bachelor of Art in Dance

Cumulative GPA: 3.89/ 4.0 

Magna Cum Laude

Annual Dean’s List: 2019-2023

Work Experience

Lead Physical Therapy Aide

Oct. 2023 – Jul. 2025

Kirkland, WA

LAKE washington physical therapy

Execute front office operations including scheduling appointments, maintaining accurate patient records, answering phone calls, and verifying insurance benefits

Lead patients through warm-up exercises

Apply modalities, including heat, ice, electrical stimulation, TENS, and IFC

Train new PT aides

Dietary Unit Clerk

Dec. 2022 – Jun. 2023

Seattle, WA

UW Medical Center

Enter patient diet order data 

Ensure patient meal selection comply with restricted diets

Intern

Jun. 2022 – Aug. 2022

Seattle, WA

Washington State Department of Health

Aggregate information on behalf of the intersection of the WA State Arthritis grant and the Building Resilient and Inclusive Communities (BRIC) grant through the CDC

Highlight gaps in resources in underserved counties to inform potential partnerships and referrals to viable resources and programming

Research Assistant

Jan. 2021 – Jul. 2022

Seattle, WA

UW Medicine Diabetes Institute Schur Lab

Collect and manage database of 200+ dynamic stimuli for the new fMRI project

Design and execute validation protocols using REDCap to ensure database quality

Edit 200+ videos on Adobe Premiere 

Research Assistant

Sep. 2020 – Jul. 2022

Seattle, WA

UW Department of Environmental & Occupational Health Sciences

Conduct survey to study eating competence in relations to dietary patterns in a sample of 130+ individuals

Process and analyze data using Qualtrics and Excel

Support the development of an online obesity learning module for UW undergraduate students  

Review and analyze 50+ research publications on PubMed

Pharmacy Assistant

Jun. 2019 – Nov. 2020

Seattle, WA

Bartell Drugs Pharmacy

Ensured patients receive their proper medications

Filled and organized prescriptions, stocked medication shelves, and processed insurance

Awards

2025 – 2026

Duke University DPT Academic Merit Scholarship

2025 – 2026

DEI&B Bridging the Gap Scholarship

2025 – 2026

Vertex Foundation Scholarship 

2019 – 2023

Washington State Opportunity Scholarship

2022

UW Study Abroad Scholarship

2019 – 2022

Harris Family Healthcare Scholarship

2019 – 2020

BECU Foundation Scholarship

2019

UFCW 21 Scholarship

Dance Performance/ Intensive

2026

Duke Vonder Hayden Studio Theater

Weaving Dreams, Duke MFA Thesis Performance

Johanna Kepler, Choreographer

2025

Duke Reynolds Industries Theatre

Woven Between Worlds, Duke Dance Program November Dances

Johanna Kepler, Choreographer

2023

London, UK

Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance

Dance summer school

2023

UW Meany Hall– Studio Theater

The Five

Jeremy Yuan, Choreographer

2023

UW Meany Hall– Studio Theater

AI Jam, UW MFA Dance Concert

Jenn Pray, Choreographer

2023

UW Meany Hall–

Katharyn Alvord Gerlich Theater

Walkin’ Bass, UW Dance Presents

Nia-Amina Minor, Choreographer

2022

UW Meany Hall– Studio Theater

there is time to breathe, UW MFA Dance Concert

Alia Swersky, Choreographer

Skills

Patient-centered clinical communication and therapeutic rapport

Bilingual patient communication (Mandarin & Cantonese)

Clinic operations: scheduling, EMR documentation, insurance verification

Leadership and training of new clinical staff

Culturally responsive care and cross-cultural communication

Strong attention to detail, organization, and workflow efficiency