Q: We are seeking help with renaming our continuing education and corporate training departments. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
A: While a number of continuing education units have experimented with other names in the past five years, the name Continuing Education is the one that works best. It remains the most popular and works the best because: 1) it encompasses everything that the unit does; and 2) the general public understands it.
Most other names are either too narrow or too broad or the meaning is fuzzy in the mind of the public. For example, the next most popular new name would be "Lifelong Learning," but in the eye of the public, that is too vague (eg K-12 schools talk about lifelong learning; traditional college-age degree programs talk about lifelong learning, etc.). Additionally, the word "learn" is motivational for generations like Boomers and seniors who appreciate learning for the pleasure and process itself. Younger generations like Gens X and Y, however, and looking for results and their key motivation is "What's in it for me?" So you need to focus on results for those target audiences.
So we continue to believe that Continuing Education is the best title if your department is inclusive in terms of programming. The Corporate world also understands the term, and if need be, you can have a web page, department or unit, or brochure with the Corporate title in it. But for the overall unit, Continuing Education is the best.
If your CE and Corporate Training departments are separate units, you may want to consider something for Corporate Training that focuses on results (as mentioned above) since your primary target audiences will be Gens X and Y. Right now most businesses are seeking more than training - they are seeking solutions and results. We have seen names like Workforce Solutions and Corporate Training Solutions will resonate effectively with Gens X and Y for corporate training programs.