Susan Abbott-Jamieson joined UK as an assistant professor of anthropology in 1974, became an associate professor in 1980 and served as the chair of the department from 1990-1994. She retired in 1998 and began an applied research and program-development position with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)/National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS). She served as Lead Social Scientist in the NMFS Office of Science and Technology from 2002-2011.

A fellowship established in her name, the “Susan Abbott-Jamieson Dissertation Research Fund Award” is given annually to graduate students in the Department of Anthropology to support pre-dissertation research. Abbott-Jamieson was also awarded a Bronze medal by the U.S. Department of Commerce for her work on Hurricane Katrina’s damage to the gulf fishing industry. Currently, she is the President of Abbott-Jamieson Consulting, Ltd and works on fisheries anthropology, environmental policy, and the oral history of occupations.