Continuing Education Unit: a new dimension in continuing education

The rapid expansion of continuing education within the professions has evolved with little continuity and structure, a fact which impedes the professional's ability to develop a long-range plan of continued professional development. A major weakness stems from society's lack of uniform standards to measure and certify continuing education. A new unit of measure, the continuing education unit (CEU), has been developed as a voluntary national effort for a uniform unit of measure for noncredit continuing education, which will both quantify programs and ensure a reasonable degree of program quality. Effective implementation and use of the CEU requires consumers of continuing education to assume a greater role in program planning and development in conjunction with program producers. The CEU provides a valuable tool for the professions to effectively use continuing education; however, improved competency requires more than the mere accumulation of CEU.