After the 1948 coup by the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia (KSČ), Růžičková was pressured to join the Communist Youth Movement, but refused. As a student in Prague, Růžičková was called in front of a committee when she was discovered reading the works of Sigmund Freud, whose literature had been banned. In 1950, Růžičková secured a position at the Academy, teaching composers to play the piano. One of her students was her future husband, Czech composer Viktor Kalabis. She gave her first harpsichord recital in 1951. As a faculty member at the Academy of Performing Arts, Růžičková was subject to performance reviews that evaluated her both professionally and politically.