After graduating in 1935, Burroughs took short courses in business administration, aircraft mechanics, supervisor training and civil defense monitoring.
He subsequently moved to Arizona, and was employed as an aircraft mechanic at Luke Field and then at Yuma Army Air Base.
After leaving military service, Burroughs sold securities at an investment firm until 1974.
Burroughs won a special election following the death of Vernon Kyhl, and assumed the District 19 seat in the Iowa Senate on November 20, 1973.
Burroughs won a full four-year term in his own right in 1974, and stepped down from the state senate on January 7, 1979.