Nonformal education in the context of continuing professional education in modern conditions

This article presents the development trends in the international educational space and the changes taking place in the world, which indicate the problem of continuing professional education. The subject of the research is lifelong learning, the aim is to identify the place of non-formal learning in the structure of lifelong learning. The UNESCO Memorandum underlines that each Member State of the United Nations should recognize that education of adults is a necessary and specific component of their educational system and a permanent feature of their social, cultural and economic development. The article shows the history of the emergence of lifelong education in the educational space and reveals the principles of lifelong learning. The authors drew special attention to the place of non-formal education in the system of continuing professional education including Masters Degrees. Different points of view on the term «non-formal education» are given. Based on the normative strategic documents the article focuses on various forms of lifelong learning, i.e. formal, non-formal and informal learning.