Continuing education and the recession

Although it’s unclear whether we are actually in a recession, the next academic year looks troubling. It’s conventional wisdom that higher education and continuing education do well in poor economic times because (1) people who cannot find jobs return to school to increase skills and (2) people afraid of losing jobs return to update and learn new skills. High gas prices may increase enrollments in continuing education programs, especially online and outreach programs where students do not have to drive to campus. I expect the University of Phoenix to start touting high gasoline prices as another reason to enroll at their institution.

Education is often seen as a relatively recession proof area (although salaries are often tied to the economy). Teacher education programs may thrive, and Rachel Zupek at Careerbuilder.com lists education as its top recession-proof job:

With more teachers retiring and an increasing number of students enrolling
in grades K-12, the demand for skilled teachers is rising. The National Center for Education Statistics predicts that in the next eight years, 2.8 million teachers must join the existing 3.2 million teachers because of retirements, higher enrollment and teacher turnover. http://www.cnn.com/2008/LIVING/worklife/03/24/cb.recession.proof/index.html

And Randall Hansen, at QuintCareers.Com, gives this advice in Seven Strategies to Recession-Proof Your Career: Build Your Future Regardless of Health of the Economy:

Focus on Professional Development Opportunities. A hallmark of successful people is that they never stop learning more about their profession/industry/career. Dispensable employees are those who still insist on doing the job as it has always traditionally been done while indispensable employees are on the cutting-edge of their profession. Find conferences that offer seminars in which you can learn new ways to perform your job -- or do it better. Consider additional training, certifications, and degrees. Continuing education is required in certain fields (healthcare, education), but it’s truly vital to your professional growth and success as well -- and not just for trying to save this job, but for yourself. http://www.quintcareers.com/recession-proof_career_strategies.html

Young continuing education professionals may well worry about positioning themselves to weather poor economic times. Our conferences and meetings must focus on giving them the skills to do so.