Rula Jiryis was born and raised in Kufur Yassif, where she finished her elementary studies. She then went on to higher education at the Technion, in Haifa, where she gained a BSc. In Medical Laboratory Sciences, as well as BSc. In Education (Biology and Physics). After graduation, she worked as a laboratory branch manager in the Galilee for seven years. During these years she also acquired an MPH degree in Health Promotion at the Haifa university. At a certain stage, she decided to become a physics teacher. With her transferable skills, she then assumed teaching positions at various high schools for the last seven years. Alongside all of these, Rula Jiryis developed an interest in linguistics particularly the analytical and critical genre of writing and had published several articles in a couple of magazines.