Jen studied a Bachelor of Arts specialising in Ancient History at Macquarie University while working overseas. She completed a Master of Archaeology and Heritage Management at Flinders University in Adelaide where she received a Chancellor’s Letter of Commendation and studied the archaeology of the first Australians, cultural heritage and the law, historical archaeology, and archaeological field methods. Jen’s Master’s thesis explored the links between interacting with heritage and personal wellbeing (with particular reference to challenging or ‘dark’ heritage interactions such as engaging with the ongoing impacts of colonialisation), and she presented findings from her research at the World Archaeological Congress held in Darwin in 2025.
Alongside her studies, Jen gained archaeological fieldwork experience from volunteering with the National Trust in Willunga, South Australia and has authored an artefact biography for a ‘slow digitisation’ project with Martindale Hall in South Australia.