Bourneuf was born on October 2, 1912, in Haverhill, Massachusetts. She attended
Radcliffe College where she earned her A.B. in 1933, Radcliffe Graduate School earning her M.A. in 1939 and her Ph.D. in 1955. Her classmates included
John Kenneth Galbraith,
Richard Musgraven and
Paul Samuelson. After receiving her M.A., Bourneuf held a research fellowship in Belgium to study trade issues. She was forced to return to the United States due to the
German invasion of Belgium. == References ==