Michelle was born and raised in Orlando, Florida and moved to Rockville, Maryland during high school. She majored in Human Biology and Society at UCLA and then returned to the East Coast to earn her master's degree at Georgetown University. She worked for a year as a Clinical Study Manager at the NIH's National Cancer Institute before starting medical school at Hackensack Meridian School of Medicine in New Jersey. During medical school, Michelle served as president of her school's Latino Medical Student Association, and she started a volleyball team with her classmates. She also enjoys traveling, browsing thrift stores, going to concerts, and finding the best Pad Thai in town.