[3] Following her PhD, Sternad joined the faculty of Kinesiology and Integrative Biosciences at the Pennsylvania State University from 1995 to 2008.

[4] As director of the Action Lab, she has been conducting computational and experimental research on the control and coordination of human movement.

Sternad's fundamental research on human motor control and learning has also impacted studies on individuals with neurological impairments, such as stroke, autism, and dystonia.

[8] As a result of her accomplishments in research and teaching, Sternad was named the 2014 Robert D. Klein University Lecturer.

[11] In 2022, she received a NIH MERIT Award bestowed to outstanding investigators for her research on basic and translational science.