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What is Continuing Professional Development (CPD)?

Continuing professional development

What is CPD?

CPD stands for Continuing Professional Development. It refers to the process of tracking and documenting the skills, knowledge and experience that you gain both formally and informally as you work, beyond any initial training. It’s a record of what you experience, learn and then apply. The term is generally used to mean a physical folder or portfolio documenting your development as a professional. Some organisations use it to mean a training or development plan, which I would argue is not strictly accurate. This article is about Continuing Professional Development as a process of recording and reflecting on learning and development.

What is it for?

The CPD process helps you manage your own development on an ongoing basis. Its function is to help you record, review and reflect on what you learn. It’s not a tick-box document recording the training you have completed. It’s broader than that.

Training or development – what’s the difference?

These terms are often used interchangeably, though there is a distinction. As a rule of thumb, training is formal and linear. It’s to do with learning how to do something specific, relating to skill and competence. Training can be as simple as using a PC application and as complex as learning how to be a pilot. Development is often informal and has a wider application, giving you the tools to do a range of things and relating to capability and competency. It involves progression from basic know-how to more advanced, mature or complex understanding.  Alternatively, it can be about widening your range of transferable skills like leadership, managing projects or organising information.

The key features of the CPD process

To justify the name, CPD needs to:

  • be a documented process
  • be self-directed: driven by you, not your employer
  • focus on learning from experience, reflective learning and review
  • help you set development goals and objectives
  • include both formal and informal learning.

What will it do for you?

CPD may be a requirement of membership of a professional body. It can help you to reflect, review and document your learning and to develop and update your professional knowledge and skills. It is also very useful to:

  • provide an overview of your professional development to date
  • remind you of your achievements and how far you’ve progressed
  • direct your career and help you keep your eye on your goals
  • uncover gaps in your skills and capabilities
  • open up further development needs
  • provide examples and scenarios for a CV or interview
  • demonstrate your professional standing to clients and employers
  • help you with your career development or a possible career change.

How do I start?

Keep a learning log and record your thoughts in whatever way suits you best. You may find it helpful to write things down in detail, for example, or to make notes on insights and learning points. The process of writing makes you think about your experiences at the time and makes planning and reflection much easier. You can’t review your experiences without recording them, however good your memory is.

Answering the following questions may help you to get started:

Where am I now?

Review and reflect on any learning experiences over the previous year or over the past three months. Write your thoughts down about what you learned, what insights it gave you and what you might have done differently. Include both formal training events and informal learning, such as:

  • learning from colleagues or shared learning from networking
  • reading about new technologies, new methods of working, legislative changes
  • shadowing or assisting an experienced colleague
  • insights and learning points from coaching and mentoring
  • reflections, insights and learning points from taking on a new responsibility
  • organisational or role change
  • temporary job swaps within the department/organisation
  • deputising or covering for colleagues
  • insights and lessons learned from mistakes
  • lessons learned from critical incidents or events

Make a note of any outcomes of each learning experience and what difference it has made to you, your colleagues, your students (if relevant) or your employer.

Where do I want to be?

Write down your overall career goals – where you want to be in two, five and 10 years’ time. Then write down no more than three specific and achievable shorter term objectives, including the dates by which you want to achieve them.

What do I have to do to get there?

Looking at your overall career goals, make a note of what you need to do to achieve them. This could include further training, job or role progression or changes in direction.

For shorter-term objectives, include the first step – what you can do today or tomorrow. For example, having a chat with your manager about a new responsibility or finding out about new technology from a colleague who has experience of it.

When should I review progress?

This step is essential! You’ll need to set a date in advance for review of the objectives you’ve set yourself. You can either do this from one review to the next or decide to review regularly – once every three, six or 12 months. Put it in your diary and do it! The cycle of continuing professional development has begun.

Ready to get started?

Download this handy Interactive CPD Toolkit for a structured and step-by-step approach to your professional development.

More Continuing Professional Development tips:

  • How to Create a Professional Development Plan

  • Managing Your Continuing Professional Development

  • Why Do We Need Appraisals?

  • Transferable Skills: The Secret of Success

 


Share this article

Lucie Johnston

Lucie Johnston has worked as a Careers Adviser in Higher Education since 2004 following a successful career running a graduate training scheme. She has particular interests in enterprise within industry, portfolio careers and career changers. Lucie has been published in Prospects and also writes for national features magazines as part of her own portfolio career.

Reader Interactions

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Comments

  1. Datucan Rachman says

    24th September 2019 at 11:58 pm

    i want to know about the CPD

    Reply
  2. Wilson says

    28th October 2019 at 1:16 pm

    Please who is the publisher

    Reply
    • jobs.ac.uk says

      29th October 2019 at 9:23 am

      Hi, The author is in the profile at the foot of the page, Lucie Johnston

      Reply
      • Vanessa says

        22nd February 2021 at 2:14 am

        When was this article published ? How can I reference it ? Thanks

        Reply
        • Kate says

          23rd February 2021 at 5:09 pm

          I’ve used this:

          Johnstone, L. (2019). What is Continuing Professional Development (CPD)? At https://career-advice.jobs.ac.uk/career-development/what-is-continuing-professional-development-cpd/ [accessed 23rd February 2021]

          Reply
  3. Nana Kofi Poku says

    30th October 2019 at 10:15 am

    The programme is good and Will like to learn mmore of it.

    Reply
  4. NEKAA AMMAR says

    30th October 2019 at 12:18 pm

    First of all, I must say thank you for the efforts you have made to enlighten this corridor of knowledge, and directed us to an endless professional activity, which will facilitate the task in accomplishing the task and to get very good results in our Professional fields and environment.

    Reply
    • patrick jones jones says

      14th April 2020 at 9:28 am

      very true because employers and Manufactures are looking at CPDs as a reward to help customers to become more familiar with their products .

      Reply
  5. Ahmed says

    19th November 2019 at 7:55 am

    Should I write my previous training courses in the CPD ?

    Reply
    • Godfrey says

      23rd May 2020 at 3:38 am

      Yes indeed you should. But now that you have decided to start do it on a continuous basis

      Reply
  6. Bwalya Kawimbe says

    23rd November 2019 at 5:50 am

    Thank you for this knowledge and guidance

    Reply
  7. jaspreet says

    25th November 2019 at 6:35 am

    I want to know about the cpd and what is it for .is it necessary to get registartion in uk

    Reply
  8. joan says

    22nd December 2019 at 1:27 am

    where can i train to gain CPD?

    Reply
  9. Patrick Jones says

    14th April 2020 at 9:16 am

    I am Building Services Engineer and I quite often see CPDs listed as part of the training packages listed in the Magazine called the Modern building services CPDs are honoured by Companies like Trend Controls and Johnsons controls LTD Its to enhance the product sales the more courses one does the more CPD points you obtain .
    Institution’s like The charter institute of building services engineers and the Institutes of surveyors both welcome CPDs with open arms .I highly recommend it simply because it gives your employers a much better insight of you achievements and ability.as well as future aspirations .

    Reply
  10. Areg says

    30th May 2020 at 9:42 am

    I graduated as biomedical science 2017 ,I want to know how I get CPD to improve my self and get more information.

    Reply
  11. Dr. Sukhbir kaur says

    14th June 2020 at 3:13 pm

    Thanks for this knowledge

    Reply
  12. Mushumo Dzvimbo says

    1st December 2020 at 2:51 am

    The information that I have gained is really valuable!

    Reply
  13. Rosemarie A. Dayao says

    23rd February 2021 at 7:01 am

    Where can I enroll CPD?

    Reply
  14. Aden says

    25th April 2021 at 5:26 am

    Hello Everyone, How can I improve my CPD and get More information about CPD

    Reply
  15. Dipika says

    26th May 2022 at 4:01 pm

    Thank you for information, it is really useful

    Reply
  16. Dipika says

    26th May 2022 at 4:02 pm

    Thank you for knowledge

    Reply
  17. Ghulam Hussain says

    27th September 2022 at 10:33 am

    How to inter cpd to upload attendence

    Reply
  18. melese says

    11th November 2022 at 2:05 pm

    better manual for me and those who are in need

    Reply
  19. Melkamu Melesse Yona says

    4th March 2023 at 8:03 am

    By what system or way I to get the CPD?
    – Also I want to get the CPD certificate?

    Reply

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