Pat Conroy grew up on the New South Wales Central Coast and went to school at Gosford High School. He studied economics at the University of Sydney and graduated with honours in 2000. While studying he worked part-time as an electorate officer for the Hon. Anthony Albanese.

After university he worked as an industrial and policy organiser for the forestry division of the Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union and then as a policy adviser to Senator George Campbell. Mr Conroy was the national economist for the Australian Manufacturing Workers' Union from 2004 to 2008. From 2008 to 2013 he was Principal Policy Adviser and Deputy Chief of Staff to the Hon. Greg Combet, AM, MP, who served as a Minister in the Rudd and Gillard Labor Governments. In these roles Mr Conroy worked in developing significant policies in areas as diverse as defence procurement, climate change and energy, and industry and innovation.

Mr Conroy was elected to the House of Representatives as the Member for Charlton in 2013 and, following an electoral redistribution, as the Member for Shortland in 2016 and again in 2019 and 2022. His Parliamentary service has included Deputy Chair (Senior Opposition member) on the Joint Public Accounts and Audit Committee, Deputy Chair of the House Environment and Energy Committee, Deputy Chair of the House Privileges Committee and as a member of the House of Representatives Standing Committee on Economics.

From 2016 to 2019 Mr Conroy was Shadow Assistant Minister for Climate Change and Energy and Shadow Assistant Minister for Infrastructure. In 2019 he was appointed Shadow Minister for International Development and the Pacific, Shadow Minister Assisting for Defence and Shadow Minister Assisting for Climate Change and Energy.

Following the election of the Albanese Labor Government in May 2022, he was appointed as Minister for International Development and the Pacific and Minister for Defence Industry.

Mr Conroy is married with two children and lives in his electorate of Shortland, which covers the Eastern Lake Macquarie area and the Northern Central Coast.