Marie Brennan remains active as an education researcher, but retired from full-time work in universities. She has worked in five Australian universities and spent nine years on the Board of the Australian Council of Deans of Education, representing the sector on many inquiries and issues. She is currently an Adjunct Professor at the University of South Australia, an Extraordinary Professor at Stellenbosch University, South Africa and an honorary Professor at Victoria University, Melbourne.
Prior to joining the university sector in 1991, Marie worked in the Victorian Education Department in a variety of roles, including in technical schools as a humanities teacher, member of the Access Skills Project Team in Curriculum and Research Branch, co-coordinating the statewide School Improvement Plan, and policy analyst in the ministry-wide Policy Coordination Division.