Sioban has been involved in art making, research, teaching and debate for all of her adult life. She began her studies at Ravensbourne College of Art and Design, Kent in 1975 and then at the Crawford College of Art, Cork, Ireland, majoring in painting, with printmaking as a subsidiary area of study; a number of factors led her to abandon painting and focus on printmaking. This prompted her to complete an MA at the Royal College of Art in London in Printmaking in 1992. At present she is Head of Fine Art Printmaking at the Centre for Creative Arts and Media, Galway Mayo Institute of Technology, Ireland.