Jan Shipps joined the faculty of the Department of History in the IU School of Liberal Arts as an assistant professor in 1973. Shipps received a B.S. degree in history from Utah State University in 1961 and an M.A. and Ph.D. in history from the University of Colorado in 1962 and 1965, respectively. Shipps was promoted to associate professor in 1976 and to professor in 1983. She taught courses in religious studies and American studies as well as in history. She served as director of the Center for American Studies from 1980-1990 and helped establish the POLIS Center in 1984 and the Center for the Study of Religion and American Culture in 1989. She retired in 1995 and received the title Professor Emeritus of History and Religious Studies. She is also a senior research associate with the POLIS Center.

Shipps is best known for her research and writings relating to Mormonism and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Shipps, a non-Mormon, became interested in the topic while living in Utah in the early 1960s. Her 1985 book Mormonism: The Story of a New Religious Tradition received high praise from both Morman and non-Morman historians. She served as the president of the Morman Historical Association from 1980-1982, the first woman and non-Morman to hold the office. She is often interviewed by the national news media regarding matters relating to Mormonism.