After earning a BSc (Hons) in Biology from the University of Bristol, Jacqui went on to receive an MSc from the University of Durham. Her PhD studies were conducted at Long Ashton Research Station, culminating in a PhD from the University of Bristol, UK, in 2001. Following a brief postdoc at the University of Bristol, Jacqui relocated to Australia in 2002 to serve as a senior research scientist at DPI-Victoria. Transitioning back to academia in 2007, she assumed leadership of a research group at the University of Queensland as an ARC QEII Research Fellow. In 2014, she moved to the University of Western Australia to pursue her ARC Future Fellowship. Currently, Jacqui leads a research group in plant genetics and genomics within the School of Biological Sciences, focusing on disease resistance in Brassicas.