A 77-YEAR-OLD HUMAN rights advocate born in a mother and baby home has been awarded a PhD by the University of Galway, marking what she described as the culmination of a lifelong pursuit of education and justice.

Dr Mary Harney, who was conferred during the university’s 2026 summer graduations, completed her doctorate with the Irish Centre for Human Rights after decades of study that included two master’s degrees and an earlier honours degree.

Speaking at the conferring, Harney said education had always been her driving force.

“It is the most important thing in the world,” she said.

“I started my BA when I was 42, I am 77 now. I’ve come all this way.”

Her doctoral research focused on human rights clinics and movement lawyering, including the emotional impact of human rights education on students and approaches to teaching resilience.

University of Galway officials praised her as an inspiration, with Professor Becky Whay describing her as “a remarkable symbol of the value of education”, while her supervisor, Dr Maeve O’Rourke, said she was an inspiration to human rights defenders globally.

Dr Mary Harney and Dr Maeve O'Rourke. University of Galway University of Galway

In a post on social media, O’Rourke said it was “a privilege to supervise Mary’s research and to watch her ignite passion and further our students’ understanding of human rights violations”.

Professor Siobhán Mullally, Director of the Irish Centre for Human Rights at the University of Galway, similarly praised Harney.

“Her remarkable story, and her combination of scholarship and activism, reflects the very best of what human rights education is about in today’s troubled world,” Mullally said.

Harney’s life story has previously been documented, including an interview with The Journal as part of the investigative series Redacted Lives, in which she described her early years in institutional care in Cork, including time in foster care and industrial schools following her birth in Bessborough Mother and Baby Home in 1949.

Mary Harney pictured in the Good Shepherd Industrial School in Cork, circa 1955. Mary Harney Mary Harney

In that interview, she recounted experiences of neglect, abuse, and harsh conditions in institutions, as well as the long-term impact of being separated from her mother and later learning the truth about her family background.

Despite those experiences, she went on to build an extensive academic record and become an outspoken advocate on human rights issues, particularly around identity, institutional records, and survivors’ access to information.

At the conferring ceremony, Harney said her journey felt like “the final part of the jigsaw puzzle”, though she added she still felt “hungry for more”.

“I’ve got two masters, an honorary master’s, and now the PhD,” she said. “I think the circle has been complete, but I think there is more.”

You can read Mary Harney’s full interview from October 2020 as part of the Redacted Lives series here.