Blogger to columnist
A blogger already meets 61% of what the columnist role asks for. The move turns on 6 required skills not yet in the profile.
45.4/ 100
1 How much of what a columnist is expected to do is already part of a blogger’s work. Directional: the figure for the reverse move differs, because moving into a speciality is not the same problem as moving out of one. 2 Every skill the columnist role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A columnist role treats 14 of its required skills as things a blogger already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- apply grammar and spelling rules
- build contacts to maintain news flow
- consult information sources
- copyright legislation
- develop professional network
- evaluate writings in response to feedback
What stands in the way is 6 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.
Table 2 · What you already bring
Of the 24 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A columnist role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a blogger background worth leading with.
- already held stay up to date with social media information skills
- already held manage personal finances management skills
- already held evaluate writings in response to feedback communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held manage writing administration information skills
- already held build contacts to maintain news flow communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held create online news content communication, collaboration and creativity
All 24 carried skills, including the 14 the columnist role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 21 missing skills fall into 5 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, numbered in the order worth working in. Areas carrying the most required skills come first, and inside each one the required skills sit above the optional ones. Nothing here is a verdict on you: it is a list of what this particular job asks for that your current one does not.
- still to learn digital journalism required
- still to learn editorial standards required
- still to learn rhetoric required
- optional, not held economics optional
- optional, not held political parties optional
- optional, not held political science optional
- still to learn participate in editorial meetings required
- still to learn present arguments persuasively required
- optional, not held adapt to type of media optional
- optional, not held ensure consistency of published articles optional
- optional, not held promote one's writings optional
- optional, not held rewrite articles optional
- optional, not held write captions optional
- optional, not held write headlines optional
- optional, not held proofread text optional
- optional, not held provide written content optional
- still to learn follow ethical code of conduct of journalists required
- optional, not held follow newspaper house style optional
- optional, not held press law optional
- optional, not held stock market optional
- optional, not held multimedia systems optional
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a columnist role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 digital journalism study this
- 02 follow ethical code of conduct of journalists practise this
- 03 participate in editorial meetings practise this
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 24 skills that carry over
- already held apply grammar and spelling rules skill
- already held build contacts to maintain news flow skill
- already held consult information sources skill
- already held copyright legislation knowledge
- already held develop professional network skill
- already held evaluate writings in response to feedback skill
- already held follow the news skill
- already held grammar knowledge
- already held spelling knowledge
- already held stay up to date with social media skill
- already held study topics skill
- already held use specific writing techniques skill
- already held write to a deadline skill
- already held writing techniques knowledge
- already held ICT software specifications knowledge
- already held apply desktop publishing techniques skill
- already held check correctness of information skill
- already held create online news content skill
- already held desktop publishing knowledge
- already held document interviews skill
- already held interview people skill
- already held interview techniques knowledge
- already held manage personal finances skill
- already held manage writing administration skill
15 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held adapt to type of media optional
- optional, not held ensure consistency of published articles optional
- optional, not held follow newspaper house style optional
- optional, not held promote one's writings optional
- optional, not held rewrite articles optional
- optional, not held write captions optional
- optional, not held write headlines optional
- optional, not held economics optional
- optional, not held multimedia systems optional
- optional, not held political parties optional
- optional, not held political science optional
- optional, not held press law optional
- optional, not held proofread text optional
- optional, not held provide written content optional
- optional, not held stock market optional
19 held skills the columnist role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role apply social media marketing skill
- not needed by the target role audio editing software knowledge
- not needed by the target role develop digital content skill
- not needed by the target role develop online community plan skill
- not needed by the target role edit digital moving images skill
- not needed by the target role edit photographs skill
- not needed by the target role edit recorded sound skill
- not needed by the target role ethics of sharing work through social media knowledge
- not needed by the target role follow up online user requests skill
- not needed by the target role manage online content skill
- not needed by the target role manage website skill
- not needed by the target role online moderation techniques knowledge
- not needed by the target role perform image editing skill
- not needed by the target role perform online data analysis skill
- not needed by the target role perform video editing skill
- not needed by the target role report live online skill
- not needed by the target role research website users skill
- not needed by the target role social media management knowledge
- not needed by the target role social media marketing techniques knowledge
9 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice
Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.
- still to learn digital journalism required
- still to learn editorial standards required
- still to learn rhetoric required
- optional, not held economics optional
- optional, not held multimedia systems optional
- optional, not held political parties optional
- optional, not held political science optional
- optional, not held press law optional
- optional, not held stock market optional
Common questions about this move
Can a blogger become a columnist?
Yes, and it is a moderate move. A blogger already covers 61% of what a columnist is expected to do: 24 skills carry over, 14 of which the columnist role treats as required.
What skills does a blogger need to become a columnist?
6 required skills are missing, plus 15 optional ones. They fall into 5 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by social sciences, journalism and information. The single most important is digital journalism.
How hard is the move from blogger to columnist?
Its learning distance is 45.4 out of 100, which is the moderate band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.
How this record was compiled
Both occupations are taken from ESCO, which lists the skills and knowledge each occupation is expected to have and marks every one required or optional. Nothing here is a prediction about hiring, and nothing here knows that a particular employer wants a particular certificate. Treat Table 3 as a starting point for your own research rather than a syllabus. The full method states what these figures can and cannot tell you.