After having obtained her BA in Museum Studies at the Amsterdam University of the Arts, she completed her RMA in Comparative Literary Studies at Utrecht University, focusing mainly on memory and trauma studies, animal studies and the South African writer J.M. Coetzee. During her Master's studies, Marliene went on exchange to the State University of New York at Binghamton. Prior to joining AUC in November 2018, Marliene worked as a Liaison Officer for incoming and outgoing exchange students at the UvA central international office.