[1][2] Pater taught Greek, Latin, and German at Somerville College from 1879, and served as the first resident tutor from 1885.
[5] Vera Brittain described her as representing the "quintessence of Oxford aestheticism" in her dress and appearance, a movement with which her brother was closely associated.
[3] According to the King's College Magazine, Pater was widely lauded for her passion and her knowledge of the highest and noblest pieces of literature, and had a lasting impact on her students.
[6] It was during her time at King's College that Miss Pater become a private tutor to Virginia Woolf.
[8] Miss Pater is thought to have served as an inspiration for Miss Julia Craye in Woolf's 1928 short story, “Moments of Being: ‘Slater's Pins Have No Points’"[9] as well as Lucy Craddock, Kitty Malone's tutor in the novel The Years.