A Global Journey, A Local Impact: Iva Angjeleska’s Path to Medicine

Nearly 5,000 miles from her hometown in Skopje, North Macedonia, Iva Angjeleska is precisely where she belongs. Driven by curiosity and a passion for new experiences, the UNC Pembroke junior is pursuing neuroscience and a future in neurosurgery in a culturally rich university town that reminds her of home.

Angjeleska attended an international high school in North Macedonia. She planned to participate in a one-year exchange in the United States during high school, but those plans were derailed when COVID-19 shut down international travel. Instead, she stayed home, continuing her service work, which included volunteering with the Red Cross, as the COVID-19 pandemic reshaped her sense of purpose.

That experience changed her.

“I saw people dying,” Angjeleska said. “I wanted to do something, not just watch.”

By her third year of high school, she knew she wanted to become a physician. In Europe, students often go directly from high school to medical school. Still,  Angjeleska was drawn to the American system, where students enter medical school with deeper preparation through undergraduate study and research.

She began looking for an affordable, high-quality pre-med program near Raleigh, where her uncle lives. UNCP stood out.

“UNCP was the best fit in every way — financially and academically,” Angjeleska said.

Arriving in Robeson County was a cultural shift. Angjeleska had not realized Pembroke was a small town, but she quickly found something special in its sense of place.

“The culture here is real,” she said. “It feels like home and that I’ve been accepted by the culture. That makes me feel more connected. I love this community. UNCP accepted me as an international student in a good way.”

That desire to give back now shapes nearly every part of her life on campus.

Researching the Brain, One Worm at a Time

Angjeleska’s passion for medicine has found a powerful outlet in neuroscience research. She works in the laboratory of Dr. Courtney Alexander, associate professor of biology and a neuroscientist whose mentorship has been transformative.

“Iva is a very bright student,” Alexander said. “She is very ambitious and is really dedicated to pursuing a career in medicine, which I think she would be well suited for.”

Their work centers on BK channels — potassium channels in nerve cells that help regulate brain electrical activity. Using Caenorhabditis elegans (microscopic roundworms), the team studies mutations in the slo-1 gene, which is homologous to the human KCNMA1 gene. In people, mutations in this gene can cause seizures, epilepsy and neurological disorders.

“We use mutated worms and study how their behavior changes,” Angjeleska said. “We are trying to understand how nerve cells and muscles are affected.”

Her long-term goal is to earn both a medical and a doctoral degree, become a neurogeneticist and help uncover why these mutations occur — and how families might prevent them in future generations.

“I want to find a cure.”

Leadership with a Purpose

Beyond the lab, Angjeleska is one of the most engaged students on campus. She serves as a global ambassador, peer academic leader, community ambassador, wellness ambassador, 1887 Society member, and treasurer for the Health Career Access Program (HCAP). She is also a campus photographer.

For Angjeleska, leadership is about service.

“Each summer and winter when I return home to visit my family, I volunteer in the emergency room,” she said. “The experience continues to shape my path in medicine while helping me balance time with family in Macedonia and stay focused on my academic goals.”

Her energy comes from community. “When I’m surrounded by positive people who share the same energy, it keeps me motivated.”

That dedication was recently recognized when she was selected as a Top Hawk, one of the university’s highest student honors. “I didn’t expect it,” she says. “To be chosen from 51 people, it showed me that what I am doing for the campus and academically has paid off.”

After medical school — likely at Duke or UNC–Chapel Hill  — Angjeleska hopes to return to southeastern North Carolina to serve communities like Robeson County.

Her goal is clear: to leave a mark at UNCP and beyond.

“When I first came here, I was lost. I didn’t know how to register for classes. But my professors, the Biology Department and the Office of Global Engagement supported me,” she said. “UNCP has given me so much. I want to give something back.”