Ecology of Dual Career - Exploring Dual Career Development Environments across Europe

The Ecology of Dual Career (Eco-DC) project was a 2-year collaborative project between seven partnering countries, Denmark, Belgium, Finland, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and United Kingdom. To advance current knowledge and supplement the work which has already been carried out, the mission of the project was to: (1) develop a comprehensive understanding of the dual career development environments (DCDEs) across Europe, and (2) provide guidelines for the development and optimization of DCDEs supporting talented and elite athletes’ in their pursuit of sporting and academic excellence. To achieve this, the project carried out four work packages.Work Package 1Aim: To identify and classify different types of DCDEs across Europe and define criteria of their effectiveness and efficiency. The work package involved the following activities:(a) the development of a taxonomy of the different types of dual career development environments and their key features that exist in the partnering countries was developed;(b) the development of an overall set of criteria of the DCDE effectiveness and efficiency; (c) a transnational project meeting hosted by Liverpool John Moores University, United Kingdom, on 01/02/2018 and 02/02/2019;(d) the dissemination of the intellectual outputs from the work package via a dedicated website and social media; (e) a multiplier sport event hosted by University of Southern Denmark, Denmark, on 28/08/2018.Work Package 2Aim: To identify factors contributing to the effectiveness and efficiency of DCDEs through exploration of selected DCDEs in participating countries by exploration of their structure, dual career arrangements, organizational culture, and the role of dual career service providers. The work package involved the following activities:(a) seven case studies, one in each participating country, were conducted;(b) a transnational project meeting hosted by University of Southern Denmark, Denmark, on 27/08/2018; (c) the dissemination of the intellectual outputs from the work package via a dedicated website and social media;(d) a multiplier sport event hosted by University of Barcelona, Spain, on 04/06/2019.Work Package 3Aim: To develop and test a DCDE monitoring tool (DCDEM) aimed at assisting stakeholders when checking the current status of their DCDE in relation to their structure, dual career arrangements, organizational culture, and the role of dual career service providers and helping them develop strategies to optimize their environments. The work package involved the following activities:(a) the development and testing of a DCDE monitoring tool (DCDEM); (b) a transnational project meeting hosted by University of Barcelona, Spain, on 03/06/2019;(c) a transnational project meeting hosted by University of Barcelona, in Barcelona, Spain, on 03/07/2019; (d) the dissemination of the intellectual outputs from the work package via a dedicated website and social media;(e) a multiplier sport event hosted by Vrije University Brussels, Belgium, on 19/11/2019.Work Package 4Aim: To disseminate the project findings and provide implementation guidelines to national governing bodies, DCDE stakeholders, dual career service providers, and dual career researchers on the development and optimization of the DCDEs. The work package involved the following activities:(a) a transnational project meeting hosted by Vrije University Brussels, Belgium, on 18/11/2019; (b) the dissemination of the intellectual outputs from the work package via a dedicated website and social media; (c) a multiplier sport event hosted by Vrije University Brussels, on 19/11/2019.