Molly Falsetti-Yu learned Spanish at a young age when her family lived in Cuernavaca, Mexico, for three years. Subsequently, she studied Spanish language and cultural production in Spanish at Stuyvesant High School in New York City, and then majored in Spanish and history at Binghamton University in New York State. She earned her master's in Hispanic languages and linguistics at the University of Massachusetts Amherst.

Falsetti-Yu has been involved in study abroad in many aspects throughout the years. She first worked at the Council on International Educational Exchange for a couple of years and later was a coordinator for the PRESHCO program at Smith for several years. She currently teaches Depicting Journey Through Digital Storytelling for students returning from study abroad.

Her interests range from second language pedagogy and acquisition to indigenous cultural production. Falsetti-Yu loves to travel and has spent time in Mexico, Spain and Peru. She has been a full-time lecturer at Smith since 2002 and has taught a variety of courses, including introductory and intermediate language courses as well as The Indian Question in Peru; Mexico: Identity, Nation Building and Cultural Autonomy; and The Teaching of French and Spanish.