She earned her Ph.D. in Hispanic Literatures at Boston University. She holds a B.A. in Humanities with mention in Psychology and Linguistics and Literature from the Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú. Dr. Balabarca specializes in Morisco and Aljamiado Literature and Early Modern Spanish Islam. She focuses on the texts produced by Spanish Muslims, written in Spanish and in both Latin and Arabic characters, during the years surrounding their final expulsion from the Iberian Peninsula in 1609 and 1614. While her secondary research interests include Early Modern Spanish Picaresque Novel and Travel Literature, she has also worked on contemporary Latin American pop culture.