Isabelle Catto holds a PhD from Paris-Dauphine-PSL University (1991) and is a senior researcher at the CNRS. Her research focuses on the study of variational problems and nonlinear partial differential equations arising from quantum mechanics. 

She was elected  Vice President of the University's Council for Education and Student Life in December 2024.

From 2022 to 2025  she was academic direcor of the dual bachelor's degree program in Artificial Intelligence and Organizational Sciences at Paris-Dauphine-PSL University.  

From 2014 to 2021, she served as  as dean and then vice president in charge of education ayt PSL University. In this capacity, she established and oversaw two innovative multidisciplinary programs: the CPES in partnership with Lycée Henri-IV and the Bachelor's degree in Sciences for a Sustainable World.