A novel taxonomy for continuing engineering education

The dynamic landscape of education and the professional workforce demands an innovative response to global events such as the COVID-19 pandemic, the massive incorporation of artificial intelligence tools, the diffusion of digital education, and the unexpected shifts in jobs, roles, and occupations in every segment of the workforce. According to the 2023 Future of Jobs of the World Economic Forum, 44% of workers’ core skills are expected to change in the next five years, and engineering is identified as one of the most common occupations with labour shortages (World Economic Forum 2023). Global challenges and factors like climate emergencies and the precarious social and economic situation of refugees and migrants have propelled economic changes, with 18 million more jobs related to the green transition expected to be created worldwide in our effort to achieve the Paris Agreement (International Labour Organization 2018). These developments highlight the need to boost our continuing education and lifelong learning systems and adapt them to be more diverse and agile. The timely and efficient capacity building of professionals and employees is becoming a priority in many countries, not only to ensure that no one is left behind in this era of great transformation but also that the labour market has the skills needed to meet the needs of this new economic, environmental, and social setup. Although influenced by unique country-specific contexts, governments, and educational institutions actively seek appropriate responses to these challenges, often in isolation and without a clear guide to designing their continuing education and lifelong learning systems in the best way. This study builds upon a 2023 comparative analysis of Continuing Engineering Education (CEE) at diverse universities in different countries, emphasizing the necessity for a standardised language to facilitate cross-country and cross-institutional knowledge sharing.