Her determination made her a leader in medicine.
Highlights:
- Detina Zalli grew up in war-torn Albania, enduring violence, fear, and uncertainty during the country’s 1997 unrest. Her family fled to Italy and eventually the UK, overcoming significant challenges as refugees without legal status.
- Despite language barriers and financial struggles, Zalli pursued her education relentlessly, earning a PhD and become a leading scientist in precision medicine.
- Detina transformed her insecurities into courage, using education to push boundaries.
- As the founder of OxfordAcademy.io, Zalli has dedicated her career to making high-quality education accessible to all. Her programs connect students worldwide with tutors from prestigious institutions, covering fields like space medicine, oncology, and bioinformatics.
- Driven by a lifelong fascination with space, Zalli has collaborated with NASA and aspires to become the first Albanian woman to travel to space, embodying her belief in dreaming big and creating opportunities for others.
“When I was feeling insecure during those tormented times in Albania, I used to look up in the sky,” says Dr. Detina Zalli, whom I met during my master’s program. I never imagined that behind my tutor was the story of an immigrant girl who had endured experiences many of us can hardly imagine. It was her book, Good Morning, Hope, that opened the door to her life—and also changed my perspective on purpose. I remember wanting to know more about her during many conversations instead of about genomic medicine. I got my chance a year later, and this is her story. “Dreaming big is not just about my own dreams, but also about making the dreams of others come true,” she says, now sitting in her home in England.
Dreaming big is not just about my own dreams, but also about making the dreams of others come true.
In 1997, Albania faced one of the darkest chapters of the 20th century. Crowds lost everything. No one chose to carry a weapon willingly; they did so out of forced survival. Protests. Unrest. Looting. Weapons and ammunition became the norm. Fear and death were everywhere—fear that not even the safety of your own home could shield you from.
On March 1 of that year, Detina and her twin sister, Argita, were playing kickball in the yard of their home in Patos, Albania. Gita didn’t like the game but played it because Detina did… when sharp, relentless noises broke the air. First, there were a few, then more intense. Glass shattered, and screams erupted. “Deti! Gita!” their father yelled amid the chaos.
The situation was very difficult. People were getting shot, and when he came late for various reasons, I was always thinking, ‘My God, is my dad safe?’
With her eyes on the clock each night, she knew the weight of fear. She waited on the balcony of her house. Time dragged on. Minutes and seconds felt slower than usual as she awaited her father’s arrival at the end of the road each night. “The situation was very difficult. People were getting shot, and when he came late for various reasons, I was always thinking, ‘My God, is my dad safe?'” Violence claimed thousands of lives and forced many to leave everything behind.
Amid this chaos, the Zalli family fled, saying their goodbyes with barely a moment to spare.
There was no way back. The only way was forward.
The road ahead was long, and they reached Italy, gripped by the fear of deportation. A woman in a black dress pleaded as her visa was denied. First, their father… He could pass. Then, Argita, Detina, and their mother. Their papers were examined, and fear became tangible. All their hopes were shattered. They were marked with an “X” and sent to a gray room as their mother prayed, and their father paced outside. They weren’t allowed to pass… In Italian, Detina asked the officials to recheck their visas in the system. Her request surprised them, and Gita’s plea was also decisive. They were valid. The officer relented and allowed them through. “There was no way back. The only way was forward,” Zalli recounts.
They reached the United Kingdom as immigrants without legal status, once again facing the threat of deportation for several years. Ahead lay an uncertain future with language barriers, constant pressure, and difficulties finding education in a new country. In 2023, “when we wrote the book (Good Morning, Hope), that’s why we wrote it in English; it was aimed at all immigrants worldwide.”
I very well knew the situation my family was in. We didn’t have much money, and I also was very aware of all my parents’ sacrifices.
Her strength stemmed mainly from her close bonds with her family, especially Argita, her rock. Gita, almost unrecognizable next to Detina in photos, has been her confidante and emotional anchor to this day. “We were always there to support one another,” she says. “I very well knew the situation my family was in. We didn’t have much money, and I also was very aware of all my parents’ sacrifices.” From then on, she took it upon herself to succeed for her family. A layer of stress added to what she already bore as a child. “I was working after school, and let’s say the bullying that I was going through was difficult,” she recalls of her early years in England.
“The (turning) point for me was when we were given the leave to remain in the UK because it meant that after six years of continuous stress, at least we had a more secure future,” she shares.
She had to fight against insecurities and the fear of failure, which once threatened to hold her back. The fear of entering the unknown or doubting her abilities. She became a leading scientist in precision medicine and an advocate for life-changing causes. In 2004, she studied Molecular Medicine at the University of Sussex. Later, in 2008, she did a PhD in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at the University of Leicester.
From fear comes courage. You cannot have courage if you’re not scared or afraid.
“When I applied to Harvard University, I remember not applying because I wanted to attend Harvard. I applied because I was feeling insecure in a way.” Accepting the offer meant confronting her fears and stepping out of her comfort zone. Against her fears, she decided to go. It meant leaving her family and moving to another continent. Still, it validated her abilities and marked the beginning of a journey that would eventually transform the lives of many others. During her time there, she organized and chaired numerous prominent events, such as the Harvard Leadership Conference. She also served as director of the Biotechnology Journal Club and held leadership roles in various programs and research initiatives. “From fear comes courage. You cannot have courage if you’re not scared or afraid.” She transformed her struggles through education into a mission to “make an impact and change other students’ lives, […] and bringing world-class academics” to them. She has taught at Oxford and Cambridge Universities and has held educational roles at Imperial College London, Queen Mary University, and the University of South Wales, where I met her.
I wanted to create a platform so that all people can benefit, irrespective of where they are. Because essentially, everybody can be smart by working hard.
Elite academic institutions open doors, but are also a privilege reserved for a few. Aware of this, Dr. Zalli decided to give back. “I wanted to create a platform so that all people can benefit, irrespective of where they are. Because essentially, everybody can be smart by working hard.”
Through OxfordAcademy.io, she designs educational programs in science, technology, and engineering accredited in the UK, connecting students worldwide with tutors from prestigious universities. The programs cover topics ranging from oncology to bioinformatics, space medicine, personalized medicine, and research, taught by professors from NASA, SpaceX, MIT, Harvard, Oxford, and many other leading institutions “This mission means a lot because […] this has taken 18 years of my career to build,” she says, striving to bring equity to education. “To me, success is mainly how much you’re doing for others and what impact you are making for society.”
To me, success is mainly how much you’re doing for others and what impact you are making for society.
Since living in Albania, she has looked at the stars and has never stopped. Both literally and metaphorically, Zalli has always dreamed of reaching the unattainable, imagining a world full of infinite opportunities and idealizing space. “I have a dream. […] To be the first Albanian woman, or the first woman from the Balkans, to go to space,” she shares with hope. She has been a NASA fellow in its Flight Technology, Applications, and Research Program, collaborating with researchers in space biology. “Dream big. Don’t be afraid of anything.” We must believe in our dreams.
