Maria Teresa Samuela (born 12 July 1972) is a New Zealand writer of Cook Islands descent.
[3] Samuela studied at Victoria University of Wellington, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts degree in 2002.
[4] Samuela returned to Victoria University of Wellington, where she undertook the creative writing programme at the International Institute of Modern Letters (IIML).
Upon completion of her studies, Samuela attained a Master of Arts degree in creative writing.
[6] In 2022, Samuela was awarded a research grant to support her work on a novel about young women from the Cook Islands who migrated to New Zealand in the period from the 1930s to the 1950s.