He was the Smith Professor Emeritus of the French and Spanish Languages and Literature at Harvard University from 1907 to 1943.

He then attended the Science and Art Department in South Kensington, London, England, from 1887 to 1888.

In 1988, he was awarded Distinction in Chemistry and Math in the Science and Art Department Examinations.

[3] He then transferred, and attended Harvard College, receiving an A.B., Phi Beta Kappa, summa cum laude, in 1894; A.M.,[3] in 1895; and Ph.D, in Romance Philology, in 1897.

Ford was the first Catholic ever hired by Harvard University,[4] he was appointed Instructor in French and Italian in 1895, Harvard Harris Fellow in Romance Philology, Instructor-in-Residence to l'Universitê de Paris, from 1897 to 1898, Instructor in French and Spanish in 1898, Instructor in Romance Languages, in 1899, and Assistant Professor of Romance Languages at Harvard University.