She is the former Chair of the Department of Social Studies of Medicine and is the former Director of the School of Architecture at McGill University.

A paper exploring the intentions and experience of women and children in suburban California established research questions to which Adams would return repeatedly.

She followed this up with studies of wartime housing in Canada;[3] privacy and girlhood in 19th-century Quebec;[4] and sick children and maternal care.

Adams has received numerous awards for her academic work including the President's Medal for Media in Architecture (2017) from the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada, the Hilda Neatby Prize (1994) from the Canadian Historical Association (CHA), the Jason Hannah Medal (1999) from the Royal Society of Canada (RSA), and a Woman of Distinction award (2002) from the Montreal YWCA.

[9][10] She has served in administrative roles including as Curator of the Osler Library and Director of the Institute for Gender, Sexuality, and Feminist Studies (IGSF) at McGill University in 2010-11.