He graduated from Trinity College Dublin (TCD) as Senior Moderator in Mathematics in 1844.
[citation needed] Early in his career, he obtained permission to accept the appointment as the first Professor of Natural Philosophy at Queen's College, Cork, in 1849, holding that post until 1854.
[1] But the bulk of his life was spent at TCD, where he served as Senior Dean and Registrar.
[2] In 1859, he became the first editor of The Irish Times, though he only served in the role for a few months.
He remained active in journalism, writing for The Nation 1862–1866, Saunders' News Letter and the Dublin Evening Mail.