Maria has a BSc in Psychology from the University of Sheffield, UK and an MSc in Clinical Mental Health Sciences from UCL, UK. She has worked as a research assistant at UCL in the 'ARIES' study, a feasibility study of a digital mental health intervention, 'my Journey 3', aiming to support recovery in psychosis. She has also worked in the NIHR Policy Research Unit at UCL. Currently, she works for Scope, a leading disability-equality charity in the field, where she delivers primary research using semi-structured interviews, focus groups, quantitative and digital research tools.