The transition from school to work or employment entails a great challenge for young people in general and those with disabilities in particular. People with disabilities are mostly confronted with manifold barriers in their transition to further education, training and employment. Regarding the right of full participation in education and employment for this target group (UN 2006) transition as a life phase with its high risk of exclusion has come into view of inclusive educational research in different countries all over the world.

The symposium focus on the transition processes of youth with disabilities in the German-speaking countries of Europe. Therefore the topic will be discussed from various perspectives: countries (Switzerland, Germany and Austria), methods (quantitative, qualitative and participative research), participants (youth with disabilities, parents, professional transition supporters) and settings (in-school/out-of-school).

The aim of the symposium is to get a deeper understanding of the transition processes of youths with disabilities based on a multi-perspective view on the phenomenon and further to learn from the experiences each country has already made in the realization of particular research projects.

In the symposium each single countries will present research projects on transition with different theoretical and methodological/methodical background. So, experiences in research, results, challenges and theoretical/methodological considerations can be discussed from a cross-country perspective.

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