Personal and professional development of students: A handbook for educators

In an era marked by uncertainty, complexity, and rapid societal change, education must equip students not only with disciplinary knowledge but also with the competences, attitudes, and reflective capacities to navigate their personal and professional development. This book addresses this need by introducing a coherent, theoretically grounded, and practically applicable approach for Personal and Professional Development (PPD) education. Developed by SCOPE, this handbook synthesises years of practice in designing, teaching, and assessing PPD. It is structured around key theoretical principles, including:

• Professional Identity Formation (PIF), which emphasises the internalisation of professional values, attitudes, and behaviours.
• Socialisation and the hidden curriculum, which shape students’ understanding of professional norms and practices.
• Subjectification, which fosters autonomy, self-awareness, and the freedom to make deliberate choices in one’s development.
• Boundary crossing, which encourages students to navigate and learn from socio-cultural differences and discontinuities in action or interaction.

The handbook argues that critical reflection is the core mechanism for PPD, enabling students to examine their beliefs, assumptions, and experiences in a structured and meaningful way. The book outlines a seven-step pedagogical approach to embedding reflection in education. The book also addresses curricular conditions that facilitate PPD education.

The book is intended for educators, curriculum developers, and institutional leaders in education who are committed to fostering PPD in their (future) professionals. It provides theory, practical examples, and actionable steps for integrating PPD into diverse educational contexts, from medical training to interdisciplinary programs.

Publisher: University of Groningen Press
Broerstraat 4 9712 CP Groningen
The Netherlands

Illustrator: Floor Velthuis

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