There´s no denying that for most working professionals in the modern day workplace, Continuing Education (CE) is a very important aspect of their careers. Some may see it purely as a requirement to be met annually in order to retain their license to continue practicing (think lawyers, accountants, doctors, dentists etc). Although others will approach it as a way to gain a competitive edge over their colleagues, open up new career opportunities, or allow them to become recognized as an authority in a particular area of expertise.
The benefits of CE aren´t limited solely to the professionals though. Studies have shown that employees working at companies who offer them training, mentoring or reimbursement for CE credits are significantly more likely to establish much longer work terms. Professionals looking to get ahead in their careers would be wise to take the perspective of CE being something to leverage to their advantage, rather than a mandatory chore.
Four reasons to leverage continuing education to your advantage:
- To keep up with the ever changing career information, skills and technology.
- To easily navigate the now highly competitive job market.
- To accelerate your career growth and transferability of your skills to new jobs.
- To fine-tune your skills in a selected area of specialization that your previous course may have not handled in details.
Technology evolution and online learning:
A lot has changed regarding access to CE courses since online distance learning was first introduced a number of years ago. There are now more resources and tools to assist in learning, more efficient and interactive ways to communicate with instructors and other learners, as well as access to a wider variety of experts and better online support to enhance your online CE learning experience.
The digital evolution has also opened up more ways to communicate, interact and engage learners, and students have access to immediate evaluation and feedback through creative online tools. There is also more cleverly designed online support technology that helps students retain more material and maintain their interest throughout the program.
Setting yourself up for continuing education success:
It is important to seek advice and guidance before deciding to enroll in an online continuing education course. You also need to understand yourself, and find out if your lifestyle will easily accommodate this arrangement. Otherwise you may end up over-committing and never actually completing all your CE objectives.
A straight talk with an advisor to help you understand how to integrate your goals with your continuing education will be a good start. When it comes to CE online studies, options vary from self-paced studies to cohort arrangements with a virtual community of instructors and learners. Try and select the option which best suits your individual preferences.
When choosing the CE institution, do a background check on the accreditation and integrity of the institution you are interested in. The best way is to get in touch with former graduates of the institution for first hand opinions on how they feel about the institution. Check if the credits you earn will be useful in future. Additionally, find out if the institution has sufficient ICT (Information Communication Technology) infrastructure such as an adequate internet connection and the right equipment for seamless information sharing and support.
Advantages of distance learning:
- Access to a broad variety of formats and courses based on your ability, needs and resources.
- The flexibility to study anywhere, anytime.
- Helps you take control of your learning progress and effectively communicate and navigate in an online learning environment.
- You set your own learning pace.
- Consume less time and money.
- Expands your access to courses that you may not be able to source locally.
- Continuing education distance learning helps you upgrade your skills and qualifications without having to quit your job or greatly deflect your career path.
Challenges facing the continuing education sector:
The sector is constantly faced with the need to develop diverse courses and programs to meet an even wider range of needs from different professionals and industry backgrounds. The sector thus has to rise to the challenge of researching, packaging up and offering strategic programs that are relevant to the market while still making sense to consumers based on their unique needs and resources.
The future of continuing and online education industry in 2017 and beyond:
Just like the ICT field, I anticipate the continuing and online education industries to greatly change in terms of the current tools and technologies in use today. There is likely to be more engagement in learning via strong design, expert teaching, more advanced technology and support. Providers are expected to continually reshape their offerings to meet the ever changing students’ and market needs, improve quality and acknowledge trends. Partnerships and collaborations are also inevitable so as to share resources and provide learners with enough opportunities that reflect their needs.