Rohini has a Ph.D. in Economics from Boston University. She has held faculty positions at Emory University, the University of Michigan and the Indian Statistical Institute before joining the Delhi School of Economics in 2005. The focus of her research is on how social and political institutions interact to shape patterns of economic and social inequality in modern democracies. She has also worked on a variety of public policy issues in India. These include studies on the effects of economic liberalisation on productivity and wage inequality, access to microfinance and the impact of school nutrition programs on child outcomes and environmental regulation.