Euroguidance Network Webinar:  

„Mental health and career management: Supporting the professional competence of career counselors in the holistic approach to the lives and careers of young people” 

Date and time: 19 November 2026 from 11 a.m. (CET) to 12.30 p.m. (CET) 

About the Topic 

Young people are called upon to plan their careers in a period of world-historical challenges such as the economic and migration crisis, armed conflicts, the green transition, the skills gap, the increase in educational paths and the new demands of the labor market resulting from rapid technological developments (AI etc.). These changes dramatically affect the mental health of young people, making it imperative that career counseling be provided in a more holistic way. Career counselors, on the other hand, are called upon to increase their professional competence in supporting young people (pupils, students, unemployed people, etc.) to plan their careers, with the aim of living a happy life - based on a deeper existential meaning, not simply in terms of well-being - to feel a sense of belonging and to participate equally in education-training and employment, setting personal and social values so that they can withstand the difficult life circumstances. 

Meet the Speakers 

Vaios Dafoulis (GR)

Dr. Vaios Dafoulis is a Child Psychiatrist-Psychotherapist, Director of Child Psychiatry Clinic „Hippocrates Hospital” in Thessaloniki, Greece. He has extensive clinical experience and has participated in numerous scientific projects and international conferences. One of his areas of expertise is the impact of the internet and social media on the mental health of young people. 

Snezhana Ilieva (BG)

Snezhana Ilieva is a full professor in Work and Organizational Psychology at Sofia University “St. Kliment Ohridski”, Bulgaria and Deputy Chairwoman of the Bulgarian Psychological Society. Her research interests are in organization development and change management, leadership, career development and consultation, work motivation, stress management, and quality of working life. She is the author of books on Organizational commitment: Psychological Analysis (1998); Organization Development (1998; 2006); Organizational culture (2006); Values and Work Motivation (2009) and more than 160 articles in the field of work and organizational psychology. Snezhana Ilieva is the head of the Center for Leadership and Organization Development at the Faculty of Philosophy of Sofia University. She is the member and coordinator of research and applied projects in vocational guidance, career development and consultation, social inclusion, and quality of life.