Rebecca Zhang grew up in Virginia and began playing piano at age six, later studying at the Peabody Preparatory under Yong-Hi Moon. She earned a Bachelor's degree in engineering in Operations Research from Princeton University, where she also minored in music performance under Elizabeth DiFelice, and went on to receive a Master's of Science in Operations Research from MIT. She works as a software engineer in New York City, where she is lucky to be able to indulge her other passion of movies, watching countless films and attending screenings and festivals.