Maria Goudakou was born and raised in Kavala (Greece). She graduated from the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki in 2000, with a degree in Biology. Since then, she has been working at IAKENTRO in the IVF laboratory. She was trained in all assisted reproduction techniques (oocyte retrieval, sperm processing, ICSI, embryo biopsy, gametes and embryos cryopreservation), and in the freezing (vitrification) of embryos and oocytes. In 2007, she was awarded a post-graduate specialisation degree on the “Biology of Reproduction” from the Medical School of the University of Thessaly (Greece). In 2015, she earned her PhD from the Medical School of the University of Crete (Greece).