Mary-Ann O'Donovan

Mary-Ann O'Donovan, PhD, is Conjoint Associate Professor of Disability Studies in the Faculty of Medicine and Health at the University of Sydney, where she also holds the position of CEO of the Centre for Disability Studies. Previously, she served as Assistant Professor in Intellectual Disability and Inclusion in the School of Education at Trinity College Dublin, Ireland, coordinating a two-year certificate program for people with intellectual disabilities. Her career encompasses extensive research and policy work across Ireland and Australia, including leading the transitions theme for the Intellectual Disability Supplement to the Irish Longitudinal Study on Ageing (IDS-TILDA) and co-leading the national consultation to develop the 10-year Australian Disability Research Agenda.

O'Donovan's research focuses on housing for people with intellectual disability, deinstitutionalisation and its quality of life outcomes, housing mobility and stability, homelessness and policy responsiveness, choice and control, access to higher education, the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS), individual supported living models for high support needs, physical activity leadership interventions, and health service utilization influenced by living arrangements. She developed the uni 2 beyond program, enabling students with intellectual disabilities to experience university life, which was a finalist in the 2024 Shaping Australia Awards. Key publications include 'Effect of deinstitutionalisation on quality of life for adults with intellectual disabilities: a systematic review' (2019), 'Same progress for all? Inclusive education, the United Nations Convention on the rights of persons with disabilities and students with intellectual disability in European countries' (2021), 'Environmental barriers, activity limitations and participation restrictions experienced by people with major limb amputation' (2011), and recent 2025 works such as 'Individualised funding schemes for people with intellectual disabilities: A systematic review' and 'Personal, Social and Vocational Outcomes of Inclusive University for People With Intellectual Disability'. Appointed Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Intellectual Disabilities in 2025, her scholarship, with over 800 citations, significantly impacts disability policy and practice.

Professional Email: mary-ann.odonovan@sydney.edu.au