In 1997, Gabriel Donleavy was Dean of the Faculty of Business at Victoria University of Technology, Melbourne. In 1998 Professor Donleavy was appointed principal of the Anglo European College of Chiropractic (AECC), Bournemouth, England. The following year he was appointed visiting professor to the business school at nearby Bournemouth University. He received his PhD from the University of Glasgow and his LLB from the University of London.
