Continuing Professional Development

Continuing Professional Development or CPD is required to a greater or lesser extent of all professionals. CPD is ongoing learning throughout a professional’s career, and is based on the assumption that qualifying to enter the profession does not mean that you are therefore competent to practice for the rest of your life. Rather, the profession will change as new technologies, techniques and approaches are developed which requires all professionals to continue to learn, debate, discuss and keep up-to-date on an ongoing basis.

Some professions require a certain amount of CPD per year and it is imperative to meet these requirements in order to keep working in that profession. In other areas CPD is recommended but not compulsory.

Most professional bodies will support their members with CPD in the following ways:

By suggesting or requiring a certain amount of CPD, sometimes measured in hours per year, sometime measured by points where certain types of activities are worth more than others
By providing CPD opportunities (courses, seminars, events) or by accrediting or promoting CPD opportunities provided by others
By providing templates for planning and recording CPD activity, often using online systems
By tracking and monitoring the amount of CPD members are doing, to remind and encourage them to report the correct amount
By asking members to reflect on and evaluate the CPD that they do in terms of its value to them in their work (this can be an alternative to measuring CPD by hours or points, or it can be required in addition)
By providing guidelines, mentors or helplines

For further information on CPD check out the professional body websites or look at the Sector Summaries.

See what CPD means for teachers

Learn how one person used CPD to enhance their skills.