Scientific Coordinator
From 2018
The Scientific Coordinator is prof. Rie Thomsen, School of Education, Aarhus University.
She is Associate professor at Guidance research unit, School of Education, Aarhus University. Her research revolves around lifelong career guidance practices and policies with a special interest on the role of communities and in organizational, leadership and management aspects of career guidance provision. Furthermore she has a strong interest in creating an inspiring environment for interdisciplinary research in Lifelong Learning and Lifelong Guidance. Rie Thomsen is an experienced partner of several international research projects. NICE, VALA and ECADOC. She has long term working relations with Institute of Employment Research at Warwick University. In 2012 she published the book Career Guidance in Communities. And in 2013 she was awarded with the national guidance award for her research. Her goals for the future are to lead researchers nationally and internationally in developing prosperous research on management, leadership and organisation in the field of career guidance.
From 2013 to 2018
Laura Nota. She is professor of Career construction and career counseling and Psychological Counseling for the Inclusion of Social Disadvantage at the Department of Philosophy, Sociology, Education and Applied Psychology, University of Padova. She is the Director of the Larios Laboratory and of the University Centre for Research and Services on Disability, Rehabilitation and Inclusion, at University of Padova, and of the post-graduate Master Course in ‘Life Design and Career Counseling’. She is President of ESVDC (European Society for Vocational Designing and Career Counseling) and SIO (Italian Sciety of Vocational Designing and Career Counseling); she is member of the Executive Board of Division 16 (Counseling Psychology Division) in the International Association of Applied Psychology; member of the Executive Board of the European Society for Vocational Designing and Career Counseling and of the European Society in Family Relation. She is co-editor of The International Journal for Educational and Vocational Guidance, member of the editorial board of The Italian Journal of Vocational Psychology, The Journal of Career Development, and member of the consulting committee of The Journal of Happiness Studies. She is member of the Life Design International Research Group, of the Career Adaptability International Collaborative Group. She is member of the Sterring Committee in the European project University Network for Innovation in Guidance – Lifelong Learning Programme (2009-2012/2013-2015). She is member of the Special Task Group ‘Globalization’ of Division 17 – American Psychological Association (from 2011- present). As regards vocational psychology and career counseling, research efforts are directed toward the study of variables and processes in life design models, setting up of instruments, planning of interventions programs and their verification. She is the author of many international and national articles and more than ten books and editor, with Jerome Rossier, of the Handbook of the Life Design paradigm: From practice to theory, from theory to practice (Hogrefe).