She received a B.A.(Honors) in Economics and a B.Ed. in Economics and Mathematics from the University of Delhi in India. Dr. Dalmia has M.A. degrees in Economics from the Delhi School of Economics and from the University of Oklahoma. She received her Ph.d. in Economics from the University of Iowa in 2000. She is a member of Beta Gamma Sigma, Committee on the Status of Women in Economics Profession, International Association for Feminist Economics, American Economic Association, and the International Atlantic Economic Society. In 2005 she received the Barbara Jordan Award for being an advocate of women and women's issues on Grand Valley's campus.