Professor Van Gorkom received her Ph.D. in Astronomy from the Kapteyn Institute in Groningen, Holland. She was a scientist at the National Radio Astronomy Observatory in New Mexico for 8 years, before joining the faculty at Columbia. Over the years, she held visiting appointments at the Raman Research Institute in India, Princeton University, Berkeley, and the Kapteyn Institute. She also served as a chair of the department for 7 years in the past.