İlayda Alikaya was born in 1996 in Izmir. Her undergraduate studies were completed at Ege University’s Faculty of Letters’ Department of Classical Archeology. She worked as an intern in the ancient city of Aigai in Manisa during her undergraduate studies. In the year she was admitted to Ege University’s Classical Archeology master’s program, she began working as an archaeologist in the ancient city of Aphrodisias in Aydın. She went to the USA as part of the Work and Travel student program during her graduate studies. She earned her undergraduate degree in Persepolis Apadana Reliefs. In her graduate studies, she continues to focus on the Achaemenid field.