Marijana Majdak was born in 1970 in Zagreb, Republic of Croatia. She graduated from the Study Center for Social Work at the Faculty of Law, University of Zagreb, in 1995. She earned her master’s degree in 2004 from the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Zagreb, and her doctorate in 2009 from the Faculty of Law, University of Zagreb, obtaining a Ph.D. in the field of social sciences, specifically social work theory with her doctoral thesis on “Stigmatization and Self-Image of Juvenile Delinquents.” In 2011, she was appointed to the academic title of assistant professor in the field of social sciences, social work.
Since 2000, she has participated in several scientific research projects funded by the Ministry of Science, Education and Sports, led by Prof. Emeritus Vlado Puljiz (“Social Policy and Social Work in Croatia,” 2002-2004) and Prof. Marina Ajduković (“Models of Action and Evaluation Research in Social Work,” 2004-2006, and “Children, Youth, Families and Social Development of Croatia,” 2006-2012), as well as in several smaller scientific projects funded by the University of Zagreb.
Since 1996, she has completed several additional trainings in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Basics, Emotional Abuse and Neglect, Applied Social Studies, Relational Competence, Gender Issues in Social Work, Active Learning and Critical Thinking in Higher Education, Mediation, and Group Supervision in Psychosocial Work.
Prof. Majdak is the course leader for Youth in Conflict with the Law, Social Work with Offenders, Methods of Supervision, and Field Practices in the area of youth with socially unacceptable behavior. She also participates in the courses Social Work with Youth with Socially Unacceptable Behavior and Interpersonal Communication.
Her areas of scientific and professional interest include social work with children and youth with socially unacceptable behavior, children and youth in conflict with the law, and offenders.
