He was educated at the University of Queensland and University of London and served his National Service in the Australian Army before becoming a dental specialist in prosthodontics and surgery and a lecturer in dentistry.
Between 1962 and 1977, he held academic appointments at the Universities of London, Queensland and Michigan.
He served in the Shadow Ministry, responsible for Defence Science and Personnel and Veterans Affairs (1993–94) and Customs (1989–90).
He was appointed the Australian Parliamentary Adviser to the United Nations for the 1983 session.
[3] MacGibbon served as a member of the British Commonwealth Observer Group for the 2000 Zimbabwe parliamentary elections.