President of the University of Poitiers since 2020, Virginie Laval is a professor of psychology at the University of Poitiers. Since 2022, she has also been president of the Training, Student Life, and Professional Integration Council of France Université (an association that brings together the leaders of universities and public higher education and research institutions in France). She conducts her research at the Center for Research on Cognition and Learning (Cerca), a joint research unit between the University of Poitiers, the University of Tours, and the CNRS. Her research in developmental psychology focuses on language and communication development over a developmental period covering childhood (preschool and school age) and adolescence.