Restructuring the System of Additional Professional Education – Modern Trends and New Challenges

This article examines the dynamics of the development of the system of continuing professional education (CPE) in the Russian Federation over the period 2020–2023, based on official statistical data. The findings indicate that during the period under review the CPE system demonstrated устойчивый growth: the number of individuals completing CPE programmes increased from 6.6 to 8.3 million, while the average frequency of participation in CPE among the employed population in 2023 was approximately once every nine years. At the same time, significant intersectoral disparities in CPE coverage were identified. In manufacturing industries, the average training frequency reached nearly once every 80 years; in construction, once every 21 years; and in agriculture, forestry, hunting, fishing, and aquaculture, once every 29 years. The study also reveals emerging trends in the CPE services market, including a growing share of training delivered directly at enterprises without the involvement of specialized CPE providers, as well as a sharp decline in the proportion of employees with secondary vocational education participating in CPE programmes. An analysis of regional differences made it possible to identify federal districts and constituent entities acting as “attracting” and “sending” centers of training, based on a comparison between their share of CPE participants nationwide and their contribution to the country’s gross domestic product. The article concludes that the CPE market is likely to continue transforming in the coming years, and that organizations that take these trends into account may enhance the effectiveness of their continuing professional education services.