Kirsten Travers decided to pursue mathematics in high school because in England, students choose their specialty earlier than they do in the United States. Travers completed her undergraduate education at Oxford in mathematics,   and obtained her Ph.D. from Duke University, also in math.   Travers came to Duke in 1994, because she liked the beautiful campus and nice people.

Travers' degree from Duke was a bit unique because, along with her courses in math, she took classes at the Fuqua School of Business.   Travers says she enjoyed the chance to try math in some new fields at Duke, and is glad for the flexibility that allowed her to do so. After receiving her PhD, she worked at DLJ, a bank in New York, for a year. Travers now works at Watch Hill Capital in Atlanta, Georgia, where she buys and sells stocks on the market.