Dr Audrey Collin is Professor Emeritus of Career Studies at De Montfort University. She began her career in personnel management, in which she gained professional qualifications (she is now Chartered MCIPD), and then moved into social research in industry. After an 11-year family career break she made her re-entry to work via an SSRC (now ESRC) research fellowship which led to a PhD. She then lectured in organisational behaviour and theory to post-experience graduates in what became the Department of Human Resource Management in De Montfort University’s Business School until her retirement in 2000.
Her PhD research was into mid-career change, and this began her interest in ‘career’ which she has continued since formal retirement. She has published, and presented at conferences, both nationally and internationally. Many of her publications (some in collaboration with Richard A Young with whom she has edited two books) have argued for interpretative, social constructionist and ‘soft systems’ approaches to studying career. More recently she has brought together the organisational and vocational career strands of her experience in a book co-edited with Wendy Patton, and is working with Wendy Hirsh to promote dialogue between different kinds of career professionals. She has also developed a wiki, www.careerstudies.net, to encourage such dialogue.
 

Email: acollin@dmu.ac.uk