The professional learning journey is a continuous, lifelong cycle. Does your learning program effectively guide learners through this journey and support ongoing professional development?
Download PDFDownload PDFOver the past few decades, we’ve witnessed a cosmic shift in what guarantees a successful career. The value of a four-year degree is steadily eroding and being replaced with an emphasis on growing (and proving) job-related skills to stay competitive.
And for the associations and certifying bodies that help professionals build and boost their marketable skills, this accelerated shift presents an incredible opportunity for growth and impact.
Lifelong learning is here to stay, and the organizations who understand and embrace the entire continuous learning journey for their learners will be here to stay, too.
Here you’ll discover the three continuous learning journey stages and how they can help learners find long-term professional success.
Continuous learning is the ongoing expansion of knowledge and skill sets. Developing and honing new professional skills is the best way for people to advance their careers. Working professionals regularly seek opportunities to expand their skills as new technology and trends emerge, which means associations and credentialing bodies are well-positioned to help their learners:
Through the continuous learning journey, learners rotate through three foundational stages as they prepare to achieve and surpass their professional milestones. These stages—Learn, Practice, and Certify—are perpetually revisited, with the 'Learn' stage evolving into Continuing Education to further enhance professional development and readiness for recertification.
Each stage is crucial in a learner’s ability to absorb, retain, and apply the knowledge they’ve learned.
It’s important for professional associations and credentialing organizations to guide learners along each of the three stages of the continuous learning journey to set them up for long-term success—in turn enabling them to advance their careers armed with their hard-earned certifications and credentials in the professional world.
Learning is about acquiring knowledge, and in the case of professional certifications, going one step further and mastering that knowledge. According to the Ebbinghaus Forgetting Curve, we forget almost 80%
of what we’ve learned within the first month. This means that if learners don’t actively apply or review new knowledge, they’re at greater risk of forgetting it.
To the right is a visual representation of a learner’s journey through a certification training program, likely in preparation for some kind of learning event such as an exam. This graph assumes that a learner starts a course with little to no proficiency on the topic being taught. As they progress, it’s assumed that their proficiency increases, and levels out at (hopefully) a high level upon completion.
This is when the Forgetting Curve sets in.
As the learner moves beyond their learning event and back to their day-to-day activities riddled with distraction, much of this gained knowledge is lost, especially when that knowledge isn’t immediately put into practice.
There are several ways learning programs can enhance their learners’ ability to learn and remember crucial information. Spaced learning, microlearning, omnichannel delivery, and personalized learning pathways are all methods of enhancing recall and memory of key points required to master an area of study.
Learning new content alone is not enough. Learners also need to leverage practice questions, self-assessments, and mock exams to put their new-found skills to the test. Ideally, these practice scenarios help build confidence—confidence in the material they need to know to achieve their career goals, and confidence that they’ll pass the final examination with flying colors.
Once learners migrate through the Learn and Practice stages, they will be ready to take (and pass!) the certification exam.
The certification and credentialing industry must be amped and ready to pick up speed as we adapt to the new skills-based economy. The global professional learning market is expected to increase by 8.11% over the next five years, leading to a market volume of $8.91 billion by 2029. Now is the perfect time for associations and credentialing organizations to capitalize on a wide-open market.
Industry-leading learning companies have already made significant headway in a growing market. Such companies see the increasing evidence suggesting strong interest in skills-based, digital credentials, especially among diverse adult learners and lower-income backgrounds. And since four-year degrees have recently taken a back seat to job-specific skills training, learners enrolled in such programs will have a leg up on the competition.
In an increasingly competitive job market, professionals are constantly seeking ways to enhance their marketability and credibility. Gaining industry-specific certifications has become a crucial strategy to achieve this and yields several benefits.
When professionals are approached for the first time regarding a new career opportunity, their credentials and certifications provide an extra layer of trust and expertise. One unique strategy we have seen work well is called ‘stapling’, where professionals staple a certification to a degree or staple a certification to a job.
Verified credentials and certifications have become a form of currency, especially for professionals looking to stand out in a highly competitive workforce.
Even if their field doesn’t require special certifications, learners who take the time to earn one will remain one step ahead of the competition. If you were a hiring manager looking at two identical candidates, but only one earned a professional certification in their field, who would you choose?
Professionals can easily use their certifications as a bargaining chip to negotiate higher salaries and career advancement. On the flip side, employers can rest assured knowing their credentialed employees will bring in more revenue for the company—a win-win for everyone involved.
As the landscape of education shifts away from traditional four-year degrees towards licenses, certifications, and credentials, associations and credentialing organizations must support the entire learning journey, from pre-assessment learning such as certification training and exam preparation, to post-assessment and continuing education phases.
Navigating this comprehensive educational pathway requires more than just intent—it demands the right partnership. BenchPrep distinguishes itself among the multitude of learning management systems by providing a seamless bridge across all stages of the learning journey.
Our platform revolutionizes learning with a unified digital ecosystem that integrates certification training with ongoing education, thus fostering a continuous and cohesive learner engagement experience.
Whether you need a powerful practice product, comprehensive certification practice courses, or ongoing continuing education, BenchPrep can take your learning programs to the next level.
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