The new financial year has begun, and now is the time to boost your skills, further your career and take charge of your professional development. Easy said!

In a competitive market such as engineering, there’s a lot of unprecedented change and uncertainty. With that comes pressure to stand out from the crowd, to show initiative and to broaden your experience. CPD, or continuing professional development, is an ongoing process which never seems to end throughout your professional career. It’s one of those things that most of us are aware of, but never really invest in as often as we’d like to, both from a cost and time perspective.

In today’s competitive market, keeping work skills up-to-date and continuously advancing your professional development is crucial in maintaining a competitive edge. Here’s why:

  • it helps you to maintain an up-to-date knowledge of processes, technology and legislation

  • it ensures you stay on top of current methods, rules and innovation

  • it positions you as an indispensable member of project teams

  • it gives you greater levels of agility from which to move into different areas as market needs change

  • it gives you skills in areas which may not be covered at university; such as business management, project management, workplace communication, client relationship building and cultural awareness

Continuing professional development should be engaging and fun, however sometimes it’s difficult to find a relevant course that fits in with your other obligations.

Engineering Education Australia (EEA) offers flexible learning options, making it more manageable for those who work full-time. Below are some of the courses on offer:

Project Management: in partnership with an engineering faculty from a leading university in Melbourne, this Australian-first, nationally-accredited project management course is designed specifically for engineers and related professionals.

Technical Engineering: designed and delivered with an interactive learning approach, this technical engineering courses is facilitated by industry experts and leading engineering professionals.

Business and Leadership: designed and delivered by industry experts, the business and leadership courses provide interactive case studies to ensure you get the most out of your learning. Courses include key topics such as: Contract Management, Influencing and Negotiation Skills and developing skills to Write a Winning Technical Document.

Originally published by Engineering Education Australia.