Ciara graduated summa cum laude from the University of Southern California with a degree in Middle East Studies. During her undergraduate experience, she focused on developing her Arabic language skills on campus and abroad through the Critical Language Scholarship program and CIEE semester program in Jordan. She also expanded her understanding of the culture, politics, and history of the Arab world through classes on literature, international relations, migration studies, and more, before completing her senior honors thesis on Islamist politics in Jordan. Following graduation, she participated in the Center for Arabic Study Abroad fellowship in Cairo, Egypt, where she continued to develop her Arabic skillset. Outside of class, she taught English to refugees in Cairo and worked on the translation of a book about women and the feminist movement in Egypt’s modern history. At NYU, she hopes to continue her engagement with refugees and immigrants by studying immigration, international, and asylum law.