Dr. David A. Jepsen is emeritus Professor of Counseling, Rehabilitation and Student Development at The University of Iowa. A native Iowan, he graduated from Iowa State Teachers College and taught mathematics and was a school counselor in Iowa and Wisconsin public schools. He received his doctorate in Counseling and Guidance from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1970 and took an appointment at The University of Iowa. He has also taught at the University of Wisconsin-Platteville, the University of Manitoba, and the University of Maryland, College Park.

Synthesizing research and theory about career development and career decision-making processes are the central themes of his scholarly work which includes over 60 articles and book chapters. Recently, he presented a series of papers that instituted a long-term project called "Occupational Careers from Rural Beginnings," a study of the 30-year careers of rural high school graduates. He is experimenting with longitudinal case studies and narrative approaches to understanding individual careers.

The National Career Development Association granted Dr. Jepsen the Eminent Professional Career Award in 1996 for research contributions in career development. He has held leadership roles in the American Counseling Association, the National Career Development Association, and the Iowa Academy of Education.