She worked at University of California, Los Angeles as a postdoctoral fellow.
[3] Kay studies the origin and evolution of the continental crust, looking at how regional tectonics are linked to magmatic processes.
She has looked at the evolution of mid-tertiary magmatic rocks in the Andean subduction zone.
[5][6] Kay serves on the board of editors of the Journal of South American Earth Sciences.
[8] 2023 Penrose Medal by the Geological Society of America][9] 2015 Member of the National Academy of Sciences of Argentina[10] 2012 University of Illinois Geology Alumni Achievement Award[11] 2011 Fellow of the American Geophysical Union[12] 2008 Fellow of the Mineralogical Society of America[13] 2007 American Association of Petroleum Geologists Outstanding Educator Award[3][14] 2000 Geological Society of America Distinguished Service Award[15] 2009 Backbone of the Americas: Shallow Subduction, Plateau Uplift, and Ridge and Terrane Collision[16] 2008 Field Trip Guides to the Backbone of the Americas in the Southern and Central Andes: Ridge Collision, Shallow Subduction, and Plateau Uplift[17] 2006 Evolution of an Andean Margin: A Tectonic and Magmatic View from the Andes to the Neuquén Basin (35 Degrees-39 Degrees S Lat)[18] 1990 Plutonism from Antarctica to Alaska[19]