Zelal is a first-year joint Clinical–Developmental Psychology Ph.D. student at the University of Pittsburgh. Her primary mentor is Dr. Jennifer Silk, and Dr. Choukas-Bradley is her secondary mentor. Zelal graduated from Connecticut College in 2022 where she double majored in psychology and computer science. At the intersection of these two fields of study, she became interested in investigating the effects of digital media on developmental mental health and pursued multiple projects investigating different types of online interactions. Later, she worked as a project coordinator for the WIFI Initiative at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill where she conducted research on social media use, peer relationships and suicidality. Zelal is now broadly interested in investigating the longitudinal links between online and offline interpersonal interactions, and self-harm behaviors and suicidality.
