After earning his doctorate, Holbrow taught for three years at Haverford College and two years at the University of Pennsylvania, then served as assistant editor at Physics Today. In 1967, he became an associate professor of physics at Colgate University, where he remained for 36 years until his retirement in 2003. In addition to teaching and research, Holbrow was instrumental in establishing first the Colgate Computer Center and later the Department of Computer Science. He became associate director of the Colgate Computer Center and then, in 1968, its director. He was promoted to full professor in 1975 and named Charles A. Dana Professor of Physics in 1986. Holbrow also served as chairman of the Department of Physics and Astronomy, director of Institutional Research, and director of the Division of Mathematics and Natural Sciences.