Nicole is a tenured Professor at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, where she founded and directs the Hawaiʻi Groundwater and Geothermal Resources Center (HGGRC). She has secured grants/donations worth over ~$30 million as Principal Investigator and co-Investigator and funded the employment of over 50 postdoctoral fellows, staff members, and students.

Nicole earned a Bachelor of Science in Geology from UCLA (among the top 50 graduating seniors) and a PhD in Geology and Geophysics from University of Hawaii at Manoa. She has received two Fulbright fellowships, a National Science Foundation International Postdoctoral Research Fellowship, and a U.S. Geological Survey Mendenhall Postdoctoral Fellowship.