Maria Manuel Vieira was born in Lisbon. She has a PhD in Sociology (1998, ISCTE, Lisbon) and has been a researcher at the Institute of Social Sciences of the University of Lisbon since 2003, where she coordinates the OPJ - Youth Observatory (ICS). She worked in the Office of Studies and Planning of the Ministry of Education in a project of the Institut International de Planification de l'Education-Unesco (Paris) and was a lecturer in the Department of Education of the Faculty of Sciences, University of Lisbon and researcher of the Center for Research in Education.

Education and Youth are her main research interests. She has published several national and international books and scientific articles on education and modernity; schooling and individuation processes; university students, vocational choices and international mobility; schooling as a bond between parents and children; adolescent cultures in school space; education, youth and public policy. Currently, she integrates the project "Family life, family-work reconciliation and early childhood care solutions", at ICS, and is scientific consultant for the project "Las élites académicas universitarias en Chile", developed at the Universidad Autonoma de Chile and funded by the Comisión Nacional de Investigación Científica y Tecnológica (CONICYT).

She has been vice-president of the APS-Portuguese Sociological Association and currently she integrates APS’s Deontological Council. She was also a scientific referee and assessor of ERC European Research Council projects (H2020 "ERC Frontier Research Grants" and FP7 "Ideas" Specific Program), FCT-Foundation for Science and Technology, Amadeu Dias Foundation, University of Lisbon Rectory and Agência Ciência Viva. She also obtained the scientific awards ERICS (Portugal) and CLABES (Mexico).