Previously, she has worked as an Assistant Professor at Scripps College. She received her Ph.D. from University of California, Los Angeles in 2006. She was a Hoover National Fellow in 2006-2007 and an Economic Fellow at Stanford University from 2007 to 2009 before joining Scripps College in 2009. Her research has focused on how colonial policy influenced educational outcomes in British India, the effects of state ownership on Indian railways and other public finance issues surrounding the provision of education and railways.