Analysis of the gap in architects’ skills of lifelong learning

Abstract

A challenge facing architectural education is keeping pace with the rapid changes in professional practice worldwide. This research assesses the processes that enable practitioners to keep up with the changes in the labour market while ensuring their skills remain relevant. This research examines the architects' self-learning and continuing education skills through an online survey. A literature review was performed to construct this survey. We compared the results of 112 Egyptian architects with those of a University of Cincinnati visiting professor delegation in Egypt. Raising skills through lifelong learning can help in bridging the gap between Egyptian graduates' competencies and the continuous change in the labour market. In light of these challenges, there was a need to integrate teaching between academic and non-academic institutions as a long-term strategy. It was also found that short-term plans for reviewing teaching methods and adapting to competency-based education are very important.

Keywords

• Architectural education
• Continued education
• Lifelong learning
• Professional practice
• Self-learning