Murray holds a PhD from Victoria University. His thesis formed the basis of his 2017 monograph Marxist Theories of Imperialism: A History (I.B.Tauris, and released as a paperback by Bloomsbury in 2019). Murray’s research interests include Marxist political economy, state theory, International Relations theory, and theories of imperialism. Since 2003, he has taught in history and politics at Deakin University. He has held Research Fellow positions at the Alfred Deakin Research Institute, where he was involved in projects concerned with the uses that Australian politicians made of history and research on the health of fishers among other things.