She received an LLA (Lady Literate in Arts) diploma from the University of St Andrews[3] in 1922 and graduated from King's College London with a B.A.

[12] Through these roles, she discovered that folk songs and dances were well suited to the needs of youth groups, and began collecting them whilst travelling in Europe.

[16] Tobitt travelled to America for the first time in October 1929 to work as a camp counselor and consultant for the Girl Scouts of the USA (GSUSA).

[22] She was also the first person to play them on American radio, as part of a program dedicated to international music that was broadcast nationally from the newly opened Rockefeller Center in November 1933.

[27] She was on the council of the Folk Festival in New York,[28] and in a letter to the Spirituals Society from January 1936, she is referenced as being "from the Program Division, Girl Scouts, NYC".

The passenger list indicates her profession as ‘writer’ and notes that her country of intended future permanent residence was the U.S.A.[38] Tobitt became a naturalized American on 29 May 1940.

There were singing competitions where the girls acted as the judges and selected the elements of performance (such as tone quality, accuracy, light and shade of expression) on which to base their judgment.

"[43] Whilst leading a singing session at the Lansing Institute, she "told of the conduct of recreational activity and its importance under war conditions in London.

[46] From 1947 to 1948, she traveled through more than 100 American communities, including high schools, universities and churches, leading song and dance sessions for 16,000 men, women and children in total.

[54] Her training sessions with youth leaders included instruction on presentation, leadership, the use of source material and the correlation of music with other activities.

[58] She also coordinated efforts to get basic supplies, such as clothing, sheets, blankets and yarn from the States to children in hospitals, schools and nurseries in Germany.

[60] Of this organization she wrote, "These wives and daughters of our security forces' personnel, State Department officials, traders and clergymen have a unique opportunity as ambassadors of goodwill to effect understanding and to bring back to their homeland their broader knowledge of the world.

"[62] In 1955, she traveled to Sri Lanka as Community Advisor for American Girl Scout Troops on Foreign Soil (TOFS)[63] for a Round Table Training Conference, sponsored by WAGGGS.

After Cousins received multiple rejections for financial support for the venture, Tobitt suggested that he make an appeal to the editor of the Nippon Times, Mr. Kiyoshi Togasaki.

Cousins acted on Tobitt's suggestion, and consequently General John E. Hull of the U.S. Far East Command agreed to provide air transportation for the women.

[71] She encouraged Girl Scouts and their leaders to collect traditional songs, such as those "handed down by members of their families, or heard in out-of-the-way places".

[79] Her books included translations from at least 15 languages: Italian, French, German, Dutch, Danish, Swedish, Greek, Portuguese, Lithuanian, Russian, Czech, Armenian, Spanish, Creole and Japanese.