This text provides a comparative analysis of school-to-work transitions in EU member states. It shows how differences in both European education and training systems, as well as labour market institutions, generated significant variation in the experiences of young people in the 1990s.

Bringing together contributions from international scholars, this book explores the changing nature of young people's transitions and challenges assumptions about pathways from education into employment in contemporary society.

This collaborative study provides a subtle and multi-layered understanding of the transition to parenthood within a cross-national comparative framework.

Using a biographical approach, this book:·[vbTab]integrates the perspectives of social policy, sociology, youth and transition research, and education and labour market research;·[vbTab]compares policy and practice in a variety of European national contexts;·[vbTab]explores the dilemmas of policies for the inclusion of young people;·[vbTab]suggests that a holistic Integrated Transition Policy, which puts young people's subjective experience at its centre, can provide an alternative to current policies and practice; This book is aimed at academics and students in social policy, sociology, education, economics and political science who are interested in policy analysis with regard to young people. The overview of recent trends also makes it relevant for practitioners and policy makers in the field.

After the breakdown of socialism in Central and Eastern Europe, the role of education systems in preparing students for the "real world" changed. Though young people were freed from coercive state institutions, the shift to capitalism made the transition from school to work much more precarious and increased inequality in early career outcomes. This volume provides the first large-scale analysis of the impact social transformation has had on young people in their transition from school to work in Central and Eastern European countries. Written by local experts, the book examines the process for those entering the workforce under socialism, during the turbulent transformation years, in the early 2000s, and today. It considers both the risks and opportunities that have emerged, and reveals how they are distributed across social groups. Only by studying these changes can we better understand the long-term impact of socialism and post-socialist transformation on the problems young people in this part of the world are facing today.

It is common for European couples living fairly egalitarian lives to adopt a traditional division of labour at the transition to parenthood. Based on in-depth interviews with 334 parents-to-be in eight European countries, this book explores the implications of family policies and gender culture from the perspective of couples who are expecting their first child. Couples’ Transitions to Parenthood: Analysing Gender and Work in Europe is the first comparative, qualitative study that explicitly locates couples’ parenting ideals and plans in the wider context of national institutions.

Perhaps no other challenge preoccupies governments and citizens in the Mediterranean region than the mass unemployment of young people, many of who have invested in higher education in the hope that ability and effort lead to fulfilling lives. Transitions to independent adulthood are, however, frustratingly long drawn-out, and often jeopardised by labour markets that are neither youth-friendly nor meritocratic. While such challenges require structural responses at the macro-economic level, career education and guidance have an important role to play in addressing both the public and private good, and in furthering the social justice agenda. This volume provides a state-of-the-art review of career education and guidance in Southern Europe and the Middle East and North Africa Region, presenting a multi-faceted portrayal of the situation in each country as well as overviews of cross-cutting themes that are especially relevant to context, such as women’s career development in the Arab states, job placement support for refugees, and the impact of faith on livelihood planning. “This book is a major achievement, focusing on a pivotal part of the world.” – Tony Watts, Cambridge, UK “This book challenges career guidance to truly think in a contextual, localised, plural and dialogical way. In providing an opportunity for the South to speak on its own terms it helps renew the field through different ways of thinking and doing career guidance.” – Marcelo Afonso Ribeiro, University of São Paulo, Brazil “This wonderful new book furnishes a way forward in helping people and communities establish practices that will support our natural striving for work that is decent, dignified, and meaningful.” – David L. Blustein, Boston College, USA “This book is packed with fresh ideas based on lucid arguments that draw from a substantial evidence base. This work is essential reading.” – Gideon Arulmani, The Promise Foundation, Bangalore, India “This publication is a must-read for every individual involved in policy, research and practice activities in the career guidance field.” – Rènette du Toit, Independent Research Services, South Africa