[1] Claire Wallace graduated from the University of Kent,[2] where she undertook a PhD about young people on the Isle of Sheppey under the supervision of Ray Pahl.

[7] Claire Wallace started her career on the Sheppey project with Ray Pahl looking at the transformations of work and employment for young people and households.

This, together with her work on young people's transitions into adulthood, formed the basis of her early books.

Whilst in Prague she became interested in East–West migration and published a series of papers and a book on this topic.

She also wrote a series of papers about aspects of transition in Eastern Europe including ones on health, ethnic identity, work and well-being, as well as being involved in a series of project including ENRI-East,[9] Health in Transition Times (HITT),[10] Living Conditions, Lifestyles, and Health (LLH),[11] Households, Work and Flexibility,[12] and Workcare: Social Quality and the Changing Relationship between Work, Care and Welfare in Europe.