Tola is from Northwest Indiana and attended Indiana University Bloomington, triple majoring in Chemistry, Neuroscience, and Biology and graduating with Highest Distinction and Phi Beta Kappa. She was awarded several departmental awards in organic chemistry during her time at IU. After her time at Indiana University-Bloomington, she worked as Lead Clinical Informatics Specialist (scribe) and later a Clinical Documentation Specialist at Oak Street Health, a network of primary care clinics for adults on Medicare. Tola is now a medical student at Harvard Medical School.

Tola has been teaching and tutoring for the past 7 years working with high school and undergraduate students, including college athletes. She has tutored or served as a teaching assistant in psychology, general chemistry, organic chemistry, biology, and high school math courses. She has mentored and advised pre-medical students as a member of the Minority Association of Pre-Medical Students (MAPS), Hope Medical Scholars at Harvard Medical School, and the Student National Medical Association.