Lifelong learning competencies among chemical engineering students at Monash University Malaysia during the COVID-19 pandemic

The importance of lifelong learning is an indisputable fact both for the development of a knowledge society and for personal development. It is essential and has been regarded as a learning outcome in engineering courses. The advent of the COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in a massive shift in the higher education landscape. The migration to online learning poses questions on whether students can cope with the sudden transition in learning from the perspective of lifelong learning skills. Hence, this study aimed to investigate the characteristics of lifelong learning competencies and factors affecting lifelong learning among chemical engineering students at Monash University Malaysia during the COVID-19 pandemic. A mixed-methods study (questionnaires and interviews) was conducted to address the research questions. Forty-two percent of the students completed the questionnaires voluntarily. Among these, six students were randomly selected for the interviews. The questionnaires of the lifelong learning scale and factor scale were adopted from the existing literature. Statistical analyses (ANOVA, t-test, and multiple linear regression) were used to analyse the differences based on gender and level of study and the correlation between the two scales. Thematic analysis was employed to analyse the interview scripts and support the quantitative analysis. The results showed that awareness, gender, and level of study do not affect lifelong learning competencies. Factors such as curiosity and openness to learning have affected the chemical engineering students’ lifelong learning competencies during the pandemic. Higher education should undertake to elicit curiosity and openness to learning among students to increase their propensity for lifelong learning.