Aly Macias graduated from the University of California, Santa Barbara with a Bachelor of Science in Biological Sciences. While at UCSB, she assisted in a neuroscience research lab, contributing to studies on memory and decision-making through MRI data analysis for split-brain research. At the same time, she worked as an ophthalmic technician at an optometry practice specializing in dry eye disease, where she worked closely with patients struggling with ocular surface conditions.