She also holds appointments in the Materials Research Laboratory and Beckman Institute at UIUC. Pinshane holds a Ph.D. and an M.S. in Applied and Engineering Physics from Cornell University, as well as a B.A, in Physics from Carleton College. Her awards include a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship, the William Nichols Findley Award for Exceptional Research from Cornell University, and conference awards from the Microscopy Society of America, American Ceramics Society, and Microbeam Analysis Society. Her research has been featured in National Geographic, BusinessWeek, CBS News, Discover Magazine, and the Guinness Book of World Records.