[1] Ergma received her Diploma cum laude (BSc/MSc equivalent) in astronomy and PhD in physics and mathematics from Lomonosov Moscow State University, and a DSc degree from Institute of Space Research, Moscow.

Before entering politics she worked as a professor of Astronomy at University of Tartu, Estonia (since 1988).

Most of her scientific research has been done on the evolution of the compact objects (such as white dwarfs and neutron stars) and also gamma ray bursts.

[2] Ergma was the only candidate in the first round of the 2006 presidential election in the Riigikogu on 28 August 2006.

She also ran along Volli Kalm and Birute Klaas for the presidency of University of Tartu, but was not elected.