Professor McCarthy is the incoming professor of the prestigious BHP Billiton Chair of Australian Studies at Peking University. This appointment coincides with his new position at the University of Western Australia as Professor of Australian Politics commencing early in 2016. He holds a professorial position at the University of Adelaide in Political Science.

His main research interests and extensive publications are on Australian politics, the collapse of public banking, Australia-China relations and the internationalisation of higher education. Greg McCarthy has held senior management positions at the University of Adelaide including the Head of School of Social Sciences (2009 -2014), The Director of International Engagement for the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences (2012-2014).

He is currently a co-director of a research centre at Beijing Foreign Studies University. Professor McCarthy also served as Vice-President for the National Tertiary Education Union from 2003-2012.