From 1959 to 1964, she was a dean of students at Cornell University; in 1964 she became the director of College and University Programs at the Educational Testing Service in Princeton, New Jersey. In 1966, she began working for the University of California, Berkeley, both as a research educator for the Center for Research and Development of Higher Education and as a research scientist and psychologist for Educational Testing Service. In 1980, she started teaching at the Harvard Graduate School of Education as a professor of education.
From 1959 to 1964, she was responsible for student affairs at Cornell University; in 1964 she took on a leadership role at the Educational Testing Service in Princeton, New Jersey. In 1966, she joined the University of California, Berkeley, where she worked in both research and education capacities for the Center for Research and Development of Higher Education and Educational Testing Service. She later began teaching at Harvard Graduate School of Education as an education professor in 1980.