Defne graduated from Boston University in 2023 with a major in Psychology and a minor in Film and TV Studies. As an undergraduate Defne worked at the Vision and Cognition Lab at BU, as well as Multicultural Alzheimer's Prevention Program at MGH, studying associations between cognitive performance and Autosomal Dominant Alzheimer's Disease brain pathology. Defne's research interests include alternative interventions for the treatment of mood and anxiety disorders. After DCRP, Defne hopes to pursue a PhD in clinical psychology, with a focus on mood and anxiety disorders in adults.