Jillian spent a high school semester at Los Olivos preparatory school in Valencia, Spain. She earned a record four associate degrees from Eastern Arizona College, in psychology, languages, pre-nursing, and general studies. She was a member of EAC’s International Club and president of the Phi Theta Kappa honor society, where she implemented a recycling program. Jillian represented EAC at the 2009 National College Summit in Washington, DC., which led to a 2010 internship for Congresswoman Anne Kirkpatrick. At EAC Jillian also won a Phi Theta kappa All-USA Academic Team scholarship.
At Northern Arizona University, where she earned her bachelor of science degree in dental hygiene, with dual minors in biology and psychology, Jillian completed ten weeks of rotation at the Hopi Health Care Center, Polacca, Arizona, and a summer internship at the Togus Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Augusta, Maine. She was selected to accompany NAU’s 2012 Mainpat Multidisciplinary Global Learning Project in eastern India, where she gave dental care to inhabitants of seven Tibetan refugee camps. Jillian was a member of the NAU chapter of the senior honor society Mortarboard.