Nurse (1980) specialist in Psychiatric Nursing (1991), Master in Education Administration and Planning (1997) and PhD in Education (2007) from the University of Santiago de Compostela with a thesis on "Student Participation in the University".
She worked as a nurse at the Portuguese Institute of Oncology in Porto for 10 years. She was a lecturer at the Imaculada Conceição Nursing School for 15 years and moved to the Catholic University with the integration of that school. Coordinates the Specialization Course in Mental and Psychiatric Health Nursing.