She received her under graduate education at the University of Nevada Reno, earning a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration in 1994. In 1997, she obtained her Juris Doctor from University of the Pacific, McGeorge School of Law, where she was a member of Phi Alpha Delta Law Fraternity and received a Moot Court Governing Board written competition award. She also clerked for the U.S. Attorney's Office during law school.