Oudkirk started working for the
US State Department in 1991. She has served consular assignments in Taipei and Dublin as well as assignments in Turkey, Jamaica, and China. Oudkirk's prior appointments include U.S. Senior Official for
APEC and Deputy Assistant Secretary for Australia, New Zealand, and the Pacific Islands. In October 2019, she attended the Pacific Islands Dialogue and the Yushan Forum where she emphasized the need for diplomatic ties between Taiwan and its Pacific allies. Oudkirk was appointed Director of the
American Institute in Taiwan on July 8, 2021. She is the first woman to hold the role. Oudkirk formally took office on July 15, 2021. In a December 2023 interview with
NPR, when asked if she believed a
PRC invasion of
Taiwan was imminent, Oudkirk stated: "There's an important distinction between making plans and training troops and actually, you know, getting ready to do something. And I think we have even heard from the PRC [People's Republic of China] themselves that their preference would be for a peaceful reunification. And the United States is confident that there is no imminent threat of invasion for Taiwan." Before Oudkirk left the Institute in early July 2024, Taiwan awarded her a Grand Medal of Diplomacy and the
Order of Brilliant Star with Grand Cordon. In August 2025, Oudkirk was appointed Civilian Deputy and Foreign Policy Advisor of the
United States European Command. ==Personal life==