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To investigate the current habit of continuing education of Hong Kong citizens, Miss Emily Pui-yung Ho, M.Phil student of Industrial-organizational Psychology and Prof. Winton Au of the Department of Psychology at The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) carried out a large-scale survey in November and December 2010. The project was subsidized and conducted by the Centre for Social and Political Development Studies in the Hong Kong Institute of Asia-Pacific Studies. A total of 1,001 full time employees aged 18 or above were successfully reached, with a success rate of 44.1%. Assuming a confidence level at 95%, the sample error variance is around 3.10%. This study aimed at understanding employees’ participation in continuing education in the past 12 months and the corresponding difficulties encountered by them. At the same time, the survey evaluated the usage of Continuing Education Fund (CEF). The survey revealed that: 

1. In the past 12 months, 54.7% employees among all respondents had participated in continuing education, and 41.9% out of those had studied work-related programmes. (See Table 1)

2. Among those who had participated in work-related courses, 31.7% respondents took these courses during their office hours or that their companies gave them compensatory time off. 52.0% took these courses during their leisure time beyond their office hours. 16.2% used a mix of office and non-office hours to take these courses. (See Table 1)

3. Among those who had participated in training or continuing education programmes required by their employers, 47.2% respondents participated during office hours or could enjoy compensatory time off, 36.7 % took courses in their leisure time, while 16.1% used a mix of office and non-office hours to take courses. (See Table 1)

4. When asked about their intentions to participate in continuing education in the coming two years, 47.8% respondents revealed that they would not or might not participate. Most respondents mentioned that 'work is too busy' (39.3%) as their reason for not participating in continuing education, followed by 'age-related reasons' (15.5%) and 'courses are not suitable' (11.9%). 'Do not have enough financial support' (11.5%) was another major reason for respondents not participating in continuing education. (See Table 2)

5. Among those who planned to prticipate in continuing education in the coming two years, 53.7% respondents mentioned that they would not or might not use CEF. Their main reasons for not using CEF were that they 'have already reached the CEF funding limit' (27.8%), 'courses are not suitable' (18.5%) and 'application procedures are too complicated' (11.4%). (See Table 3)

Result implications and recommendations: 

a. In recent years, the HK Government have been trying to encourage citizens to participate in continuing education. CEF was founded in 2002 to subsidize adults with learning aspirations to develop themselves for the knowledge-based economy. The study examines citizens' engagement in continuing education. It is hoped that the results may help the HK Government and various public and private organizations develop policies that can further facilitate continuous education.

b. The results showed that some employees were able to participate in courses or training programmes during office hours or could enjoy compensatory time off. The research team sees that some employers did value continuing education. Yet, around half (52.0%) of the respondents who studied work-related programmes and 36.7% of the respondents who participated in company-required training or classes needed to use their leisure time or non-office hours to take these courses. The research team hopes that more employers would encourage employees to participate in continuing education for the betterment of the company’s long term development. One of the methods is to allow employees to have official time-off to take these courses.

c. In addition, around half (47.8%) of the respondents mentioned that they would not or might not participate in continuing education in the coming two years. Their main reason was 'being too busy at work'. The research team suggests that the HK Government may consider adopting a Professional Development Day, like the one for school teachers which allows them to participate in training or educational programmes. For employees who have applied for courses under CEF, it is suggested that the Government can cooperate with their employers to allow them to apply official time-off to participate in continuing education. The HK Government and employers should put in concerted effort to facilitate continuous education of the work force.

d. The research team also recommends the implementation of standard working hours so that employees can have more time to learn in their non-work hours. Regardless of age, education level or income category, 'being to busy at work' was the major obstacle for employees to pursue continuing education. Apart from work, employees should have sufficient time to devote to their family, continuing education and leisure activities in order to maintain a work-life balance.

e. 'Not having enough financial support' (11.5%) was another major obstacle hindering respondents to pursue continuing education. This was the second most prevalent reason among respondents in the age group of 18-29 (29.3%). One major aim of CEF is to alleviate financial burden in continuous education. Yet CEF is capped at $10,000 which may be insufficient to support a longer plan of continuing education.

The Government founded CEF with $5 billion in 2002. By May of 2009, the actual and approved subsidies have already reached 94% of the Fund. While an additional amount of $1.2 billion was injected into the Fund in 2009, it is expected that the additional funding would be used up within a short period. The research team strongly recommends the Government to establish CEF as a long term educational subsidy for citizens in order to sustain continuing education among the working population in Hong Kong.

f. 'Courses are not suitable' (18.5%) and 'application procedures are too complicated' (11.4%) were among the major reasons for respondents not using CEF. After the official launch of the Qualifications Framework (QF), new courses falling outside the eight specified domains of the CEF may also be considered for registration under the CEF if they are designed in accordance with the Specifications of Competency Standards (SCSs) drawn up by the respective Industry Training Advisory Committees and are registered under the Qualifications Register (QR). It is considered that the types of courses that are qualified for QEF are broad enough. In addition, a search function is available on the CEF website to help potential applicants to search for courses according to their interests. Application procedures can also be found from various websites, documents and course providers. Hence, it is deducted that respondents' concerns over 'not having suitable courses' and 'application procedures being too complicated' are due to a lack of understanding about CEF instead.

As CEF-related promotions are mainly undertaken by course providers, people may not be aware of courses which are not heavily advertised. While there is an online search function for all CEF-funded courses, CEF may want to review how to further promote the full spectrum of courses funded by CEF via more media channels and to enhance people’s understanding of the application procedures of CEF.

In summary, most respondents have pursued continuing education last year. The research team encourages more employers to allow employees to take courses during office hours or to provide them with compensatory time off. The Government may even take the lead to promote a Professional Development Day and to introduce a policy on standard work hours to cater to the need for continuous education. It is hoped that CEF would become a long term educational subsidy. More publicity on CEF is needed to promote awareness on the wide spectrum of courses offered and the ease of application.