Annette Jacobson received her B.S. in chemical engineering from Carnegie Mellon in 1979, and worked for PPG from then until 1985, attaining the rank of senior research engineer. She returned to CMU and received her Ph.D. under the supervision of Professor Ethel Casassa. In 1988, she became the director of the Colloids, Polymers and Surfaces Program, a joint program between the Mellon College of Science and the College of Engineering, Carnegie Institute of Technology. She is currently teaching professor of Chemical Engineering, and associate dean for Undergraduate Studies in the College of Engineering.