Jennifer Cromley has two main lines of research: 1) comprehension of ilustrated scientific text and 2) achievement and retention of undergraduate students in STEM majors. She has conducted basic (e.g., eye tracking, think-aloud, regression) and applied (randomized control trial, quasi-experiment) research in both areas. Her experimental work has been done in lab, middle school, high school, and undergraduate settings, using both in-person and technology-delivered instruction. Her work has been funded by the US Department of Education, the US National Science Foundation, and other university grant programs. She has twice been named one of the world's most productive Educational Psychologists.

Dr. Cromley teaches learning theories (e.g., EPSY 400, 590), research methods (e.g., EPSY 403, 550), and educational statistics (e.g., (EPSY 580, 590). She uses an apprenticeship model with graduate advisees and independent study students, where students contribute to research based on their current skills, and earn authorship in conference papers and journal articles.