She was a full professor at the University of Otago from 1981, and was the inaugural director of the university's Research Office from 1988 to 1995 Born in the rural South Australian town of Burra on 5 September 1929, Loutit was the daughter of Marjorie Oliver Jeffery (née River) and Roy Joseph Jeffery.
[1] Loutit and her family moved to Dunedin in New Zealand in 1956 when her husband was appointed as a lecturer in microbiology at the University of Otago.
[1][2] After some years as a homemaker, Margaret Loutit became a part-time lecturer in microbiology at the University of Otago in 1959, and began doctoral studies in 1962.
[2][3] Loutit played a key role in the establishment of the University of Otago's Research and Development Office, and served as its inaugural director, from 1988 until 1995.
[2] She was also director of the university's Aquaculture Research Centre from 1986 to 1990, and was president of the Bacteriology Division of the International Union of Microbiological Societies between 1989 and 1990.