Marika qualified as an optometrist in 2011 at the University of Auckland. She started her career in the specialty low vision, contact lens and diabetic clinics at Dunedin Public Hospital, and subsequently has worked primarily in private practice. Nowadays she is the Head of Referrals and Registrations at Blind Low Vision NZ, where her mission is to improve access and awareness of low vision services. She keeps up with the optometry world and continues to practice once a fortnight in a vitreoretinal clinic at Eye Institute private ophthalmology clinic in Auckland.